Press Sec. Throws Shade At Nancy Pelosi Over ‘Retaliatory Tariff’ Aimed At China

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took a swipe at former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) during Tuesday’s daily briefing, pointing to the California Congresswoman’s previous statements on tariffs and saying that President Donald Trump was only doing what she’d suggested.

Leavitt referenced Pelosi’s stance on tariffs — and specifically, the United States’ trade deficit with communist China — from nearly 30 years earlier, and argued that she should be pleased with the “retaliatory tariff” the Trump administration was placing on China.

Pelosi, in a recently-recirculated clip from 1996, stood on the House floor and laid out her reasoning for hitting back at China economically — among them the fact that China placed an average tariff of 35% on all goods coming from the United States, and only allowed some 2% of U.S. exports to cross the border into the country. In return, the United States had only a 2% tariff on Chinese goods — and allowed one-third of the goods produced in China to be imported into the country. The result of that deficit was 10,000,000 Chinese jobs supported by U.S. imports compared to only 170,000 American jobs supported by Chinese trade. That, she said, was a “status quo” that was unacceptable.

“On this day, your member of Congress could have drawn the line to say to the President of the United States, do something about this U.S.-China trade relationship that is a job loser for the United States,” she said at the time.

Leavitt, during Tuesday’s briefing, referenced that speech, saying, “Nancy Pelosi said, ‘How far does China have to go? How much more oppression? How big a trade deficit? How many jobs have to be lost for the American workers? How much dangerous proliferation has to exist before members of this House of Representatives will say, ‘I will not endorse the status quo’?”

“Well, President Trump is finally answering her call,” Leavitt continued. “Nancy Pelosi can thank President Trump today for the 104% retaliatory tariff that will be going into effect on China.”

WATCH:

WATCH: @PressSec highlights Nancy Pelosi's own words on our unsustainable trade deficits:

"Well, @POTUS is finally answering her call… years later. Nancy Pelosi can thank President Trump today for the 104% retaliatory tariff that will be going into effect on China." https://t.co/QQP5vJoHRI pic.twitter.com/jigac6eyLd

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 8, 2025