President Trump Takes Questions From Reporters About Tariffs, Deadly Texas Flood

Forbes Breaking News

President Trump takes questions from reporters before departing Bedminster, New Jersey, en route to Washington, D.C.

Transcript

00:00Thank you very much.

00:04We've been in touch with Governor Abbott and very

00:07close to Governor Abbott and everybody in Texas.

00:12Kristi Noem has, as you know, been there and will

00:16continue to be there.

00:18And we're working very close with representatives

00:21from Texas.

00:22And it's a horrible thing that took place.

00:25Absolutely horrible.

00:27So, we say God bless all of the people that have

00:31gone through so much.

00:32And God bless the state of Texas.

00:34It's an incredible place.

00:37Any questions?

00:38The Press, President, are you still planning to

00:39phase out FEMA?

00:42The President Well, FEMA is something we can

00:45talk about later.

00:47But right now, they're busy working.

00:48So, we'll leave it at that.

00:50Go ahead.

00:50The Press, President, for the trade letters that

00:52you're sending out on Monday, Secretary Besant said

00:56that it would be a three-week extension and that

00:59rates could go back up to the April 2nd level on

01:02August 1st.

01:03Is that what we should do?

01:04The President Well, we're sending letters out on

01:05Monday having to do with the trade deals.

01:09It could be 12, maybe 15.

01:11You know Secretary of Commerce right here.

01:14And I guess, Howard, I would say it could be maybe as

01:18many as 15 or so.

01:20And they'll be going out on Monday and some will go

01:22out on Tuesday and Wednesday and it'll and we've

01:26we've made deals also.

01:27So, we're going to have a combination of letters and

01:30some deals have been made.

01:31The Press, President, is there a reaction to

01:33Elon Musk starting a third party?

01:35The President I think it's ridiculous to start a

01:37third party.

01:38We have a tremendous success with the Republican

01:42Party.

01:43The Democrats have lost their way, but it's always

01:45been a two-party system.

01:47And I think starting a third party just adds to

01:50confusion.

01:50It really seems to have been developed for two

01:53parties.

01:54Third parties have never worked.

01:55So, he can have fun with it, but I think it's

01:57ridiculous.

01:58The Press, President, what's your message going to

02:07be to Netanyahu tomorrow?

02:09The President Well, we're working on a lot of

02:11things with Israel.

02:13And one of the things is probably a permanent deal

02:16with Iran.

02:17In other words, they have to give up all of the

02:20things that you know so well.

02:23The attack turned out, according to every single

02:26Atomic Energy Commission, that was a complete and

02:29total obliteration.

02:32And we had the pilots, as you know, at the White

02:34House on Friday.

02:35They were incredible.

02:36And they confirmed that.

02:38They know better than anybody, by the way, but they

02:39confirmed that every bomb hit its mark perfectly.

02:43And they would have to start all over again at a

02:47different location.

02:48This one was, as the, you know, the word I used was

02:52the correct word, obliteration.

02:53The Press, President, will your message be on

02:55Gaza to Netanyahu?

02:56The President I think we're close to a deal on

02:58Gaza.

02:59We could have it this week.

03:00I think there's a good chance we have a deal with

03:16Hamas during the week, during the coming week,

03:20pertaining to quite a few of the hostages.

03:22You know, we've gotten a lot of the hostages out, but

03:26pertaining to the remaining hostages, quite a few of

03:28that will be coming at.

03:30We think we'll have that done this week.

03:32The Press, President, do the tariff rates change at

03:35all on July 9th, or do they change on August 1st?

03:39The President What are you talking about?

03:40The Press, do they change on July 9th or August 1st?

03:44The President There are going to be tariffs.

03:45The tariffs are going to be the tariffs.

03:47I think we'll have most countries done by July 9th.

03:51Either a letter or a deal.

03:54The President But they go into effect on August 1st.

03:57Tariffs go into effect August 1st.

03:59But the President is setting the rates and the

04:01deals right now.

04:03Okay?

04:04The Press Are you investigating whether some of

04:05the cuts to the federal government left key

04:07vacancies at the National Weather Service or in the

04:10emergency coordination?

04:11The President No, they did not.

04:12The President No, they did.

04:13I'll tell you, if you look at that, what a

04:17situation that all is.

04:18And that was really the Biden setup.

04:21That was not our setup.

04:22But I wouldn't blame Biden for it, either.

04:24I would just say this is a hundred-year catastrophe,

04:29and it's just so horrible to watch.

04:32The Press Are you planning to visit Texas,

04:34Mr. President?

04:35The President Probably on Friday.

04:37We wanted to leave a little time.

04:38I would have done it today, but we'd just be in

04:40their way.

04:41Probably Friday.

04:43The Press Are you been briefed on the ship that

04:45was hit in the Red Sea?

04:46Do you know if the Houthis attacked that ship today?

04:50The President We'll give you a report sometime

04:51tonight or tomorrow.

04:53The President The D.C. City Council has not

04:55approved the new stadium for the commanders.

04:58If they don't approve it, will you step in?

05:00The President Well, we see what happens.

05:02I've been looking at the deal.

05:04And, you know, I don't blame them.

05:06They have to- it's a very important piece of

05:08property.

05:08It's a great piece of property.

05:09So, we'll see.

05:11But if I can help them out, I will.

05:12You know, ultimately, we control that.

05:14The federal government ultimately controls it.

05:17So, we'll see what happens.

05:19I saw the plans.

05:20I saw the stadium.

05:22The owner is a very, very successful and a very

05:26good man.

05:26I know him a little bit.

05:28And it would be a great place for the NFL to be

05:31there, I can tell you that.

05:32So, if they want to negotiate a little tough,

05:34that's okay with me.

05:36The Press Are you going to see the commanders

05:37change the name back to Redskins?

05:40The President Well, you want me to make a

05:42controversial statement?

05:44The President Well, I would.

05:45I wouldn't have changed the name.

05:47But that's there.

05:48It just doesn't have the same- it doesn't have the

05:51same ring to me.

05:52But, you know, winning can make everything sound

05:54good.

05:55So, if they win, all of a sudden, the

05:57commander sounds good.

05:58But I wouldn't have changed the name.

05:59The Press Are you going to help Ukraine in the

06:01same way you helped Israel?

06:02The President Say it.

06:04The Press Are you going to help Ukraine in the

06:05same way you helped Israel?

06:07The President I am helping Ukraine.

06:09I'm helping it a lot.

06:10And it's a war that should have never happened.

06:13It's a war that should have never started.

06:14If I were President, if the election weren't rigged,

06:17and it was rigged, rigged so badly, and that's

06:20come out.

06:21Read Miranda Devine in the New York Post today.

06:25The election was totally rigged.

06:27And if it weren't rigged, you wouldn't have a war

06:29with Russia right now.

06:30And you wouldn't have had inflation.

06:32And you wouldn't have had the horrible Afghanistan,

06:36the way they left.

06:37Not that they left.

06:38We would have been out before them.

06:39But the way they left, I think the most embarrassing

06:43day in the history of our country, you wouldn't have

06:46had the October horror show with Israel and Hamas.

06:50You wouldn't have had any of it.

06:51You wouldn't have had the recent showdown with Iran.

06:54You wouldn't have had any of it.

06:56And you wouldn't have had inflation.

06:58You said you had a strategic call with Zelensky the other day.

07:02What strategy did you decide?

07:04I thought it was a good call.

07:06He's being hit very hard, as I said he would.

07:09He's being hit very hard.

07:10And I was very disappointed with my call with President Putin.

07:14I was very disappointed.

07:16Mr. President, in light of the floods,

07:18do you think that the federal government needs to hire back

07:21any of the meteorologists who were fired in the wind?

07:25I wouldn't know that.

07:26I really wouldn't. I would think not.

07:29This was the thing that happened in seconds.

07:31Nobody expected it. Nobody saw it.

07:34Very talented people are there, and they didn't see it.

07:37It's, I guess they said, once in a hundred years

07:39they've never seen anything like this.

07:41So, I wouldn't.

07:43I mean, people are trying to blame the school.

07:45They're trying to blame the camp.

07:46They're trying to blame.

07:47It's just a horrible thing.

07:49But, no, I wouldn't say that, no.

07:51The Press Press, Secretary Ludnick, are you expecting any deals

07:54to be signed this week?

07:55And what countries are closest to that?

07:57The President is right in the midst of discussing all sorts

08:01of deals with all sorts of countries.

08:03And the gentleman to my right is going to decide,

08:06and I'm going to be with him when he makes that decision.

08:09The President, thank you very much.

08:11Thank you, everybody.

08:13Thank you, everybody.

Category

Transcript

Recommended