Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon believes the way President Donald Trump is handling China is the “defining moment of their time.”
“The relationship between China and the United States is going to set the framework for how we go forward as world economy for the next 25 to 50 years,” Bannon told CNBC’s Squak Box Friday morning.
President Trump tweeted Thursday an additional 10 percent tariff would be added to the remaining $300 billion worth of Chinese goods entering America starting Sept. 1. Talks are still on-going with China.
…during the talks the U.S. will start, on September 1st, putting a small additional Tariff of 10% on the remaining 300 Billion Dollars of goods and products coming from China into our Country. This does not include the 250 Billion Dollars already Tariffed at 25%…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 1, 2019
“Yesterday was a very important day in economic American history because on Sept. 1 we are going to cross a psychological barrier. Every good that comes to the United States from China is going to have a tariff on it,” Bannon said.
The former Breitbart editor-in-chief believes Trump has given the Chinese enough time to “fundamentally restructure” its economy. Also, he praised the president’s consistency on China since he announced his 2016 presidential campaign.
“His consistency has been pretty remarkable,” Bannon said.
“Not just what he said over many years, but what he said on the campaign trail. You heard last night the response from working class and middle class people at his rally up in the midwest.
“If you look at from [Trump’s announcement of the new tariffs at] Mar-a-lago all the way through yesterday, it’s very consistent with what the President has laid out and what has to happen.”
Bannon accused the Chinese Communist party of “gaming” the system and use to American leaders “buckling” into this false concept of engagement.
“I think what is quite remarkable is the foreign policy establishment and all the elites that got us into this situation, this is the fundamental reason Donald Trump is President of the United States.
He thinks China wants a Democratic administration because they are “very week” on China. Candidates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were cited as examples.
Trump’s China policies are returning America to “American Greatness” by bringing back the country’s manufacturing base, according to Bannon.
“I think President Trump understands politics in 2020, but for the direction of the nation and the direction of free-market capitalism in the industrial democracy in the next 20 years,” he said; adding:
Those who mock [Trump] don’t get the fact that he understands deeply what the geopolitical struggle is and how important this is. I think this is going to power him to 2020 because people see this is what presidential leadership is.
After his interview Friday, Trump retweeted a portion of his interview and praised Bannon.
“Nice to see that one of my best pupils is still a giant Trump fan. Steve joined me after I won the primaries, but I loved working with him!”
Nice to see that one of my best pupils is still a giant Trump fan. Steve joined me after I won the primaries, but I loved working with him! pic.twitter.com/jRpmdrGYTB
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 2, 2019
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of Battleground State News. Follow Zachery on Twitter.
Photo “Steve Bannon” by CNBC.
