The sweeping new tariffs promised by President Donald Trump will go into effect immediately after their formal announcement on April 2, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
During a press briefing on April 1, Leavitt said the administration was prepared to move quickly in launching a new reciprocal trade policy aimed at countering decades of unfair foreign competition.
Leavitt said the administration intends to reward companies that manufacture in the United States.
“If you make your product in America, you will pay no tariffs,” she said.
She added later in remarks, “If they want to be absolved of that tariff—then they can come here to the United States of America to do business [and] bring their jobs here.”
Leavitt said the move would help correct a massive U.S. trade imbalance, which reached a record $1.2 trillion in 2024, according to federal data.
“Tomorrow will go down as one of the most important days in modern American history,” Leavitt said. “Our country has been one of the most open economies in the world, and we have, hands down, the best consumer base—but too many foreign countries have their markets closed to our exports. This is fundamentally unfair. The lack of reciprocity contributes to our large and persistent annual trade deficit that’s gutted our industries and hollowed out key workforces, but those days of America—beginning tomorrow—being ripped off are over.”
She pointed to recent investment pledges from major companies—including Apple, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited—as evidence that Trump’s strategy is already working.
The tariffs are part of a broader economic strategy that includes cutting taxes, reducing regulation, and investing in advanced technology.
While critics say the tariffs could raise prices for consumers and contribute to inflation, Leavitt said the administration was confident it could deliver economic growth without destabilizing markets.
“[The administration is] not going to be wrong. It is going to work,” she said when asked about the risk of economic backlash. She noted that inflation was only at 1.4 percent when Trump left office in 2021 and said he is committed to returning it to that level.
She added that while the administration remains open to negotiations with trading partners, the new policy is focused on “fixing the wrongs of the past” and encouraging countries to lower their barriers or relocate production to the United States.
Trump is expected to deliver remarks detailing the tariffs and the list of targeted countries from the White House.
