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The Post-Liberation Day Hangover…

As Trump’s tariff Mardi Gras comes to a close, Republicans are scratching their heads over their options, the Senate is looking to have Canada’s back, and the White House insists they’re not screwing around. What could possibly go wrong?

Donald Trump
In many ways, the lead-up to Trump’s Rose Garden tariff rollout, which the president had hyped for weeks as “Liberation Day,” felt like a throwback to his first administration, defined by last-minute scrambling and uncertainty. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Leigh Ann Caldwell
April 3, 2025

About 24 hours before Donald Trump was set to announce his sweeping global tariffs, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with a group of House Republicans for a get-to-know-you session. Alas, the new levies, the cornerstone of the president’s economic vision, were the last thing he wanted to talk about. At one point during the Tuesday conversation, which was moderated by Rep. Lisa McClain, Bessent got three questions, including one about tariffs. He answered the other two. When McClain reminded him about the third, he chuckled, and said he thought he’d gotten out of answering it, per one member who attended the event.