PolitiFact | Trade

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Mostly True

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All Fact-checks for Trade

stated on April 9, 2025 in remarks at a White House event

In 2024, “China made $1 trillion off trade with the United States.”

true

false

stated on April 8, 2025 in a speech

The U.S. is “taking in almost $2 billion a day in tariffs.”

true

false

stated on April 6, 2025 in an interview

“We had an agriculture export deficit that increased from zero when President Trump left to $49 billion” under former President Joe Biden.

true

barely-true

stated on April 9, 2025 in a Truth Social post

On enacting country-by-country tariffs April 9.

true

full-flop

stated on March 26, 2025 in an interview with Newsmax

“We have automobile plants being built at levels we've never seen … and they're going up fast.”

true

barely-true

Karoline Leavitt

stated on March 11, 2025 in a White House press briefing

“Tariffs are a tax cut for the American people.”

true

false

stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention

Former President Donald Trump "intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year."

true

half-true

stated on June 13, 2024 in a post on Facebook

“Saudi Arabia will stop using the US dollar for oil sales and will not renew the 50-year petro-dollar agreement with the U.S.”

true

false

stated on December 28, 2023 in a campaign ad

Gov. Ron DeSantis “called China ‘Florida’s most important trading partner.’”

true

false

stated on December 13, 2023 in a town hall in Londonderry, New Hampshire

Under the Trump administration's trade deal, “China's only fulfilled one-third of the promises of agricultural products that they were supposed to buy from our farmers.”

true

half-true

Vivek Ramaswamy

stated on October 13, 2023 in a speech at the First in the Nation summit in Nashua, N.H.

"95% of over-the-counter pharmaceuticals" in the U.S. come from China.

true

false

stated on July 29, 2023 in a speech

Says Gov. Ron DeSantis “opposed my China tariffs and he heartlessly opposed” $28 billion for farm relief, which was paid for by China.

true

false

stated on December 12, 2022 in an interview

The U.S. "trade deficit with China has gone from about $80 billion a year in the 1990s to $400 billion a year.”

true

mostly-true

stated on September 27, 2022 in a campaign ad

“I voted with Trump on trade.”

true

mostly-true

stated on May 14, 2022 in posts on social media

The United States can’t import baby formula because of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

true

barely-true

stated on March 7, 2022 in an ad from Advancing American Freedom

Joe Biden's cancellation of the Keystone pipeline "dramatically increased Americans' dependence on Russian oil."

true

false

stated on February 3, 2022 in Twitter

Says President Joe Biden "is trying to send taxpayer dollars to manufacturers overseas that do not abide by the same (carbon emission) standards we do at home."

true

half-true

stated on March 1, 2022 in an ad

Joe Biden's sanctions on Russia “are riddled with loopholes and don't even start for 30 days. They have carve outs for the energy and financial sectors.”

true

half-true

stated on February 25, 2022 in an ad

The Keystone XL pipeline "would have produced 830,000 barrels of oil per day, more than enough to offset what we import from Russia."

true

half-true

Stand Up To China

stated on January 20, 2022 in an ad

Build Back Better “would be a huge payday for Chinese manufacturing” and “would fill our streets with cars made with Chinese parts.”

true

false

Can car shoppers avoid tariff sticker shock by buying American brands? It’s not that simple

Can car shoppers avoid tariff sticker shock by buying American brands? It’s not that simple

By Amy Sherman • April 10, 2025

Are other countries ‘cheating’ the U.S. on trade?

Are other countries ‘cheating’ the U.S. on trade?

By Louis Jacobson • April 9, 2025

Did Trump impose ‘the largest tax hike in our lifetime’? How it compares, as it’s currently proposed

Did Trump impose ‘the largest tax hike in our lifetime’? How it compares, as it’s currently proposed

By Grace Abels • April 7, 2025

Fact-check: President Donald Trump’s Super Bowl LIX interview with Fox’s Bret Baier

Fact-check: President Donald Trump’s Super Bowl LIX interview with Fox’s Bret Baier

By Louis Jacobson • February 9, 2025

New Trump tariffs could put even more downward pressure on economy because they’re less targeted

New Trump tariffs could put even more downward pressure on economy because they’re less targeted

By Louis Jacobson • January 29, 2025

Fact-checking Donald Trump’s interview with ‘Meet the Press’

Fact-checking Donald Trump’s interview with ‘Meet the Press’

By Louis Jacobson • December 8, 2024

Can President-elect Donald Trump enact tariffs without Congress? And can anyone stop him?

Can President-elect Donald Trump enact tariffs without Congress? And can anyone stop him?

By Louis Jacobson • December 2, 2024

Fact-checking J.D. Vance and Tim Ryan in Ohio Senate race

Fact-checking J.D. Vance and Tim Ryan in Ohio Senate race

By Amy Sherman • November 4, 2022

Newsmax, Fox News air outdated, out-of-context photos of empty shelves in segments bashing Biden

Newsmax, Fox News air outdated, out-of-context photos of empty shelves in segments bashing Biden

By Bill McCarthy • October 22, 2021

High prices and depleted shelves: Here’s why the supply chain is a mess — and will be for a while

High prices and depleted shelves: Here’s why the supply chain is a mess — and will be for a while

By Bill McCarthy • October 15, 2021

Ask PolitiFact: What is China's Belt and Road Initiative, and why is Joe Biden concerned?

Ask PolitiFact: What is China's Belt and Road Initiative, and why is Joe Biden concerned?

By Louis Jacobson • June 16, 2021

How Donald Trump performed on 11 key promises

How Donald Trump performed on 11 key promises

By Louis Jacobson • January 19, 2021

The art of the oversell: 10 times Trump’s bombastic rhetoric didn’t match reality

The art of the oversell: 10 times Trump’s bombastic rhetoric didn’t match reality

By Ciara O'Rourke • September 29, 2020

Explained: How Trump and Biden would confront China

Explained: How Trump and Biden would confront China

By Noah Y. Kim • September 14, 2020

Latest promises about Trade

Institute a reciprocal tariff policy

Add a 60% tariff on goods from China

Add a tariff of 10% to 20% to all nondomestic goods sold in America

Adopt a four-year plan to phase out Chinese imports

Award federal contracts to companies that make all products in US

Allow import of prescription drugs from other countries

Establish an offshoring tax penalty

Change tax code so pharmaceutical production stays in the US

Tighten 'Made In America' rules

Use the Defense Production Act to produce personal protective equipment

Raise tariffs on goods imported into the U.S.

Use U.S. steel for infrastructure projects

Load more promises about Trade

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