This has to be one of the single funniest French retorts in the history of commerce.  If President Trump follows through on auto tariffs, France will strike back.  Let that sink in.
Oh noes,… your next Peugeot, Citroen or Renault purchase might cost more.  D’oh.

PARIS (Reuters) – Europe will hit back if U.S. President Donald Trump follows through with a threat to slap import tariffs on European-made cars, France’s finance minister said on Monday. Trump escalated already burning trade tensions on Friday by threatening to hit all imports of cars assembled in the European Union (EU) with a 20 percent tariff.   (more)

The EU is the most protectionist trade bloc in the world.  The German auto-sector is the most protected trade sector inside the EU.  The hypocrisy is silly.
The EU, Germany specifically, needs access to the U.S. market to survive.  Angela Merkel has already conceded this point in the EU concessionary position to abandon all auto tariffs; in exchange for removal of Steel and Aluminum tariffs.
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Whoopsie – During a debriefing session between Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, Canadian politicians and business leaders, the chief NAFTA negotiator for Canada Steve Verheul accidentally told the group, while cameras were rolling, there were no actual NAFTA negotiations taking place.

When a seemingly shocked participant then asked a follow-up question about how could Steve Verheul reconcile that admission against earlier statements about an upcoming  Memo of Understanding (MOU), Ms. Freeland quickly shut down the discussion -in french- until the cameras left the meeting.  [Watch Video Segment Here]

Council Question: “Do you still meet your counterparts? Do you still have committees that are working?  What is the status of the negotiations?
Steve Verheul: “We don’t have any active negotiations. I haven’t talked to them in a little while.”
Council Question: “Since, …since?”
Steve Verheul: “Two or three weeks. Um, I’ll have the odd conversation, but no real engagement, no real negotiation session.”
Council Question: “And when we hear that you were close to a kind of MOU [Memo of Understanding] what was the basis of that?”
Chrystia Freeland: awkward interruption in French. (watch below)

What became evident within the exchange is the Canadian government trying to hide the lack of NAFTA progress from concerned citizens inside Canada.  In essence, the Canadian government is lying to their citizens about the possibility of a NAFTA agreement.
The Canadian economy contracting.  Last month the Canadian economy dropped 31,000 full-time jobs.  Amid an economy one-tenth the size of the U.S, that would be a comparative single-month job loss of 310,000 in the United States.
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Seek first to understand.  During an assembly of Canadian left-spectrum pundits the U.S. and Canada relationship is the topic; the backdrop is the economic consequences, trade and NAFTA.   In this group the high-minded Canadians express their views, their wounded sensibilities, and yet simultaneously highlight an important strategic flaw.
Within their political frame-of-reference, they cannot fathom the tenuous nature of their dependency.  They think they are more important than they are. Their inability to accept the weakness of their economic position is based on their feelings. Pride is very dangerous in negotiations amid apex predators. If you are prideful you provide a strategic advantage for the opposition.  In negotiations, President Trump doesn’t care about ‘feelings’ or opinions toward his approach.
The Canadian economic position is ‘not to lose‘, the Trump position is to win.  There is a huge strategic difference within those two perspectives.

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President Trump is hosting a roundtable MAGAnomic meeting in Las Vegas with business leaders and professionals.  The discussion centers around ongoing benefits from the tax reform initiative; the administration policy toward trade rebalancing; and the ongoing America-First investment and business development plans.
UPDATE: Video Added

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Office of Management and Budget Direct Mick Mulvaney had a break-out session during the White House cabinet meeting today where he discussed part of the government restructuring and reform proposals.
We have waited a long time for this type of common sense initiative.  This is MAGA.  Some will say it can’t be done; however, if it is not attempted it most certainly will never be done. As President Trump has shared for years: “the impossible is only the starting point”; and I would not bet against this administration actually getting this accomplished.  WATCH:

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U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross gives an interview with CNBC about how the administration’s ongoing trade initiatives are addressing U.S. products and interactions with ongoing congressional stakeholders.
One of the more recent globalist (Wall Street) approaches to fend-off President Trump’s America First trade reset has been to target the ethical position of Secretary Ross; within the interview Ross swats away press reports about his current and prior investments.

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This win needs to be sipped slowly for maximum enjoyment.  

First, we would draw your attention to May 23rd, when President Trump announced an instruction to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to begin a Section 301 review of the auto industry a week prior to the implementation of the Steel and Aluminum tariffs.
At the time when all media were discussing other ‘matters’ CTH pointed out the strategy that was visible in the Auto-Sector.  China, the EU (specifically Germany), and Canada were the strategic trade targets in the approach.  About a week later, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland snarkily announced her “sisterhood in trade” with EU Trade Minister Cecilia Malström, and how together they formed a strategy and were going to block President Trump.  They were very pleased with themselves (please watch).
Freeland and Prime Minister Justin from Canada, then strategized with Emmanuel from France and Angela from Germany on how they were going to use the G7 to embarrass President Trump on trade conflict issues via the summit; and subsequent use of media press conferences.  The entire thing back-fired, bigly.  President Trump announced the tariffs would continue until trade reciprocity improved.

It’s been two weeks since the best-laid-scheme was attempted.  In the interim, the international audience has watched President Trump’s unrelenting approach toward China.
In the grand-trade-conflict; China is a big fight none of the sideline players would ever attempt.  However, the downstream consequence of the international trade team watching intently is their realization that President Trump is not bluffing.  You can hear the proverbial gulps from across the Atlantic; and the tremors up North.
Back to May 23rd, 2018, and remember the auto tariff proposal.  President Trump has made it clear that he’s more than willing to use reciprocal trade tariffs against all trade partners in getting fair and balanced trade.  He ain’t bluffing.
Well, guess what just happened?
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White House Trade Policy Adviser Peter Navarro discusses the release of the White House Trade and Manufacturing Policy report (full pdf below) on China.

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Today, the White House Office of Trade & Manufacturing Policy (OTMP) released a report outlining how China’s policies threaten the economic and national security of the United States.
OTMP studied how China seeks to capture, through its “Made in China 2025” plan, the emerging high-technology industries that will drive future economic growth. China is targeting industries ranging from artificial intelligence, aerospace, and augmented and virtual reality to high-speed rail and shipping and new energy vehicles. Many of these “Made in China 2025” industries have important defense applications.
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When you plant your tree in another man’s orchard, you might end up paying for your own apples; it’s a risk you take…
….and President Trump knows how to use that leverage better than anyone could possibly fathom; because in this metaphor Beijing relies upon the U.S. for both the seeds and the harvest.  President Trump drops the $200b M.O.A.T (Mother of All Tariffs):

White House – On Friday, I announced plans for tariffs on $50 billion worth of imports from China. These tariffs are being imposed to encourage China to change the unfair practices identified in the Section 301 action with respect to technology and innovation. They also serve as an initial step toward bringing balance to our trade relationship with China.

However and unfortunately, China has determined that it will raise tariffs on $50 billion worth of United States exports. China apparently has no intention of changing its unfair practices related to the acquisition of American intellectual property and technology. Rather than altering those practices, it is now threatening United States companies, workers, and farmers who have done nothing wrong.

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U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross discusses President Trump’s tariffs against China and the significance of America’s trade deficit.

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