In a wide-ranging interview with CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick laid out the Trump administration’s aggressive trade agenda, defending the newly imposed 10% tariff policy as a critical national security measure and a step toward reversing decades of U.S. economic imbalance.
Appearing on air just days after the announcement sparked volatility in global markets, Lutnick offered a forceful defense of the administration’s strategy. He described the tariffs not as a bargaining chip, but as the foundation of a long-term shift designed to reindustrialize America, bring back domestic manufacturing, and end what he repeatedly characterized as decades of economic exploitation by foreign nations.
“It’s About National Security”
According to Lutnick, the rationale behind the new tariffs runs deeper than economics. “We don’t make medicine in this country anymore. We don’t make ships. We don’t have enough steel and aluminum to fight a battle,” he said. “All our semiconductors are made overseas.” The secretary stressed that the United States had allowed itself to become overly dependent on foreign production in critical sectors, compromising its ability to respond in times of crisis.
Lutnick tied the current trade deficit—$1.2 trillion—to the loss of control over essential industries. He warned that if left unaddressed, this deficit would lead to an eventual erosion of U.S. sovereignty. “Eventually, we’re not going to own America. We are going to be owned by the rest of the world.”
Tariffs Here to Stay—for Now
Pressed repeatedly about the longevity of the 10% tariffs, Lutnick made it clear: “There is no postponing. They are definitely going to stay in place for days and weeks.” He added that these measures are not part of a short-term negotiation tactic but represent a comprehensive reset of America’s global trade relationships.
“The President needs to reset global trade. Everybody has a trade surplus and we have a trade deficit. We are paying away our future and our lives.”
Lutnick cited the example of Vietnam, noting that the Southeast Asian nation exports roughly $120 billion worth of goods to the U.S. while importing just $12 billion. “It has nothing to do with tariffs. If they went to zero-zero, they would go to 200 billion with us,” he said, arguing that structural trade imbalances—not just tax policy—were at the heart of the issue.
Broad Tariff Scope to Close Loopholes
Lutnick also addressed confusion over a list of countries, including obscure territories like the Heard and McDonald Islands, facing the 10% tariff. The secretary explained that no nations were exempted to prevent third-party circumvention, citing China’s past attempts to route goods through intermediary countries to avoid earlier tariffs.
“If you leave anything off the list, countries that try to basically arbitrage America go through those countries,” he said. “The President knows that. He’s tired of it. And he’s going to fix that.”
A Vision of Reindustrialization
The Commerce Secretary outlined a sweeping vision to rebuild American industry with an influx of new investment. “Trillions and trillions of dollars… are coming to invest in America,” he said. “Companies need to build it here, and we will protect them for building it here.”
While acknowledging that American workers are more expensive, Lutnick argued they’re also more skilled, asserting that the U.S. workforce will be central to this revival. However, he emphasized automation as a key driver of this shift, stating that future factories will be “really automated” and “run by great American workers”—technicians, electricians, HVAC specialists, and mechanics—rather than traditional assembly-line laborers.
“The core to our workforce is going to have the greatest resurgence of jobs in the history of America,” he declared.
No Bailouts for Now
When asked whether the administration was considering financial support for industries affected by retaliatory tariffs—such as the agriculture subsidies issued during Trump’s first term—Lutnick said he had not been involved in any discussions around such measures. Instead, he focused on the long-term economic impact of reshoring production: “Trillions of dollars of factories are going to be built in America. That’s huge GDP.”
On Foreign Pushback
Lutnick confirmed that officials from around 50 countries had reached out to the White House in response to the tariffs. But he interpreted this not as a sign of compromise, but as validation of the administration’s stance.
“What it shows is that all these countries know that they’ve been ripping us off, and the day has come for that to end.”
A Pledge for Future Generations
Throughout the interview, Lutnick repeatedly emphasized the generational stakes of the administration’s trade policy. “This is the moment that the United States of America takes hold of itself,” he said. “This is Donald Trump’s agenda, and we’re all here to help him execute it.”
He closed with a promise that these measures would not just serve today’s economy but would lay the groundwork for a stronger, more self-reliant America. “We need him to fix it for our children and our grandchildren,” Lutnick said.
