CNN's John Berman put a Republican lawmaker on the spot over president Donald Trump's comments about his tariffs leading to toy shortages for children.
The president appeared to acknowledge Wednesday that his trade wars could disrupt supply chains, saying "maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls, and maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more," and Berman pressed Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) to justify the tariff policy.
"Congressman, I'm sure you saw some of the comments the president made at the White House yesterday talking about tariffs and the possible impact on store shelves," Berman said, showing a clip of Trump making the remarks. "So fewer dolls, more expensive dolls. This is how the the New York Post put it this morning, the Rupert Murdoch-owned New York Post. Trump admits tariffs will raise some prices, cause shortages, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30: 'Skimp on the Barbie.' How do you feel about that messaging?"
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The first-term congressman defended the tariffs as necessary and said any short-term disruptions – including fewer toys for children – would eventually be worth the pain.
"Well, listen, the president has been very clear, and Republicans have been very clear and consistent, that what we want to see is jobs come back into the United States," Gill said. "We'd like to see us revive our manufacturing base and put the American people and the American worker first. Tariffs are one part of that. As you can see, according to the approval polling that you guys just showed in the last segment, the American people continue to trust president Trump on the economy. This is a key part of what he ran on, is bringing jobs back to the United States, reviving our heartland. Tariffs are one part of that."
"He said that there's going to be some short-term disruption," Gill added. "There has been, but hopefully we can get through this quite soon, and I think we're going to see some major successes with bilateral trading agreements brokered by president Trump."
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