White House spokesman Sean Spicer holds a press briefing at the White House in Washington January 23, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Washington Post: White House press secretary says border wall will be funded by 20 percent import tax on Mexican goods
MEXICO CITY–President Enrique Peña Nieto on Thursday called off a trip to Washington, after President Trump launched his plan to construct a border wall and insisted he would stick Mexico with the bill. The incident opened one of the most serious rifts in memory between the United States and its southern neighbor.
Trump spokesman Sean Spicer added a stunning new detail about the proposed wall project later Thursday, saying that Trump intended to pay for it by imposing a 20-percent tax on all imports from Mexico.
Peña Nieto had been scheduled to meet with Trump on Tuesday to discuss immigration, trade and drug-war cooperation. He called off the visit after Trump tweeted that it would be “better to cancel the upcoming meeting” if Mexico was unwilling to pay for the wall.
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WNU Editor: Right now …. every American CEO who has a plant in Mexico is now calling their law-maker voicing their protests. Will these protests have an impact …. no …. with the exception of a few politicians, no one in Washington will say publicly that they support “saving” Mexican jobs, and because of the optics no one is going to publicly oppose “directly” President Trump on this issue. In hindsight …. I have to wonder if the Trump White House set up Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto for today’s events …. because what has happened today has the appearance of being planned and formulated …. starting early this morning …. President Trump Plays ‘Hardball’ With Mexico. My prediction …. Mexico will negotiate a trade deal with the U.S. in the coming months …. and yes …. there will be a formula where they will be paying for the wall …. albeit indirectly.
