Larry Summers blasts ‘ludicrous’ claim by Scott Bessent
New York (CNN) — Larry Summers is fed up with the tariff defense made by his successor, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Summers, who served as treasury secretary under President Bill Clinton, blasted Bessent’s claim that Chinese producers will bear the brunt of new US tariffs on imports from China.
“This position is contradicted by every introductory economic textbook and course of which I am aware,” Summers wrote in a post on X on Sunday. “What is the argument or authority for a claim that seems ludicrous?” READ MORE
CNN: Americans’ confidence nosedives on trade war fears
My interview with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown on CNN’s Situation Room. “I fear we may be only in the second inning of our economic challenges unless the Administration is scared straight towards rational policy by the evidence surrounding it.”
CNN: Tariffs & Uncertainty
My interview with Laura Coates on CNN. “Trump’s tariffs are pretty much all downside as economic policy.”
Tariffs, economic uncertainty raise risk of recession
Many economists say tariffs and economic uncertainty are raising the risks of a recession. One of those economists is Larry Summers, a former U.S. Treasury secretary and former director of the National Economic Council.
Here & Now‘s Scott Tong talks to Summers about President Trump’s economic policies and why they are raising fears of a recession.
This segment aired on March 20, 2025.
Free Press: Larry Summers Thinks Trump’s Tariffs Are a Disaster
By Oliver Wiseman, The Free Press — We are at war. A trade war, that is. With China and—less explicably—Canada and Mexico. Donald Trump’s 25 percent tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada went into effect on Tuesday morning. This week, the administration also introduced an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports.
Canada has responded with 25 percent tariffs targeting around $100 billion of U.S. goods. China retaliated too, blacklisting 15 U.S. companies and slapping 15 percent tariffs on American chicken, wheat, corn, and cotton, and 10 percent on other food. Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum has said she is prepared to respond with levies of her own. READ MORE
Five Former Treasury Secretaries: Our Democracy Is Under Siege
New York Times — When we had the honor of being sworn in as the 70th, 71st, 75th, 76th and 78th secretaries of the Treasury, we took an oath to support and defend the United States Constitution.
Our roles were multifaceted. We sought to develop sound policy to advance the president’s agenda and represent the economic interests of the United States on the world stage. But in doing that, we recognized that our most fundamental responsibility was the faithful execution of the laws and Constitution of the United States.
We were fortunate that during our tenures in office no effort was made to unlawfully undermine the nation’s financial commitments. Regrettably, recent reporting gives substantial cause for concern that such efforts are underway today. READ MORE
MSNBC ‘Strategy of being a bully’: Trump’s tariffs will ‘backfire’
MSNBC — Larry Summers, Former U.S. Treasury Secretary, joins Andrea Mitchell to analyze President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China. Summers highlights the grave impacts these tariffs will have on the American consumer and families. READ MORE
