(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump told NewsNation that more than 100 countries are calling “morning, noon and night” dying to make a deal with the United States on tariffs, with the first tariff deals with India, South Korea and Japan coming in a matter of weeks.
“We’re in a great position of strength,” Trump said during NewsNation’s town hall on his first 100 days in office Wednesday. “We’ll make great deals and where we don’t make great deals, we’re just going to set the deals.”
Trump said that he could set deals of 40, 50 or 60% with some countries rather than negotiate. However, the United States is currently negotiating with South Korea, Japan and India, he told NewsNation.
Trump said that the country will make “many, many deals” but said that in many cases, he must take a hard line.
Asked when he would announce the first deals, Trump said the U.S. has “potential deals” in place with countries such as Japan.
While Trump’s tariffs have raised concerns with everyday Americans, Trump said the U.S. is “in a great position of power” when it comes to setting the deals that are right for the U.S. to avoid being taken advantage of. When pressed by political commentator Bill O’Reilly when the first deals would be in place on Wednesday, Trump replied that he was not as in as much of a rush to get deals done as the former Fox News host.
“We are sitting in the catbird seat,” Trump said. “They want us. We don’t need them. …They’ve been ripping us off. South Korea has been ripping us off. We pay for their military, they take advantage of us on trade.
“These are friend and foe, and we often do better with foe — meaning the enemy — than we do with the friends. The friends have been brutal to this country on trade.”