[ti:Trump: Trade Wars Are Good, Easy to Win] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.12]President Donald Trump is defending his plan to raise taxes [00:06.12]on steel and aluminum imports entering the United States. [00:13.60]Trump declared on Friday that "trade wars are good, and easy to win" [00:21.00]-- a claim that some Americans were quick to criticize. [00:26.44]The critics include members of his own Republican Party. [00:33.08]Trump has said that the U.S. government [00:36.60]would set punishing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. [00:42.88]Such a move would increase tensions with China and other countries. [00:49.80]They also would raise the possibility of higher prices [00:54.48]for American businesses and consumers. [00:59.60]Early Friday, Trump took to the Twitter social networking service to defend himself. [01:07.64]He wrote: "When a country (USA) is losing many billions of dollars on trade [01:14.44]with...every country it does business with, [01:18.16]trade wars are good, and easy to win. [01:23.00]Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, [01:30.84]don't trade anymore-we win big. It's easy!" [01:36.92]He later tweeted: "Our steel industry is in bad shape. [01:42.32]IF YOU DON'T HAVE STEEL, YOU DON'T HAVE A COUNTRY!" [01:47.12]His announcement came only after an intense debate among his top aides. [01:54.36]It brought strong criticism from some Republicans and financial markets [02:00.40]concerned about tariffs and their effect on the economy. [02:06.80]The president asked heads of aluminum and steel companies to the White House Thursday. [02:13.24]He announced plans to set tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel [02:20.96]and 10 percent on aluminum imports next week. [02:26.40]He added that the tariffs would remain for "a long period of time." [02:33.80]The Associated Press says it was not immediately clear [02:38.48]if the taxes would affect all trading partners. [02:43.80]Around the world, Trump's words led to criticism [02:48.12]from the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. [02:54.12]He rejected the plan as a clear intervention to protect U.S. domestic industry. [03:01.92]Juncker said the EU would take steps to punish the U.S. [03:06.88]if Trump followed through. [03:10.40]China's Commerce Ministry said it was seriously concerned about Trump's plan. [03:16.64]The ministry said China has satisfied its trade agreements [03:21.72]and appealed to the U.S. government to settle disputes through negotiation. [03:28.56]China has received many complaints from the United States, [03:33.24]Europe and other trading partners. [03:37.24]They accuse the Chinese government of unfairly supporting Chinese exports [03:43.40]and restricting the Chinese market in violation of its free-trade promises. [03:51.68]Canada is the largest provider of steel and aluminum imports in the U.S. [03:59.08]The Canadian government said it would "take responsive measures" [04:03.80]to defend the country's trade interests and workers [04:08.56]if the tariffs affected Canadian steel and aluminum products. [04:15.12]Critics warned Trump's tariffs may lead to a trade war. [04:20.28]They suggested other countries will take action to punish the United States [04:26.00]or use national security as a reason to set their own trade rules. [04:32.32]Trump's move will possibly raise steel and aluminum prices in the U.S. [04:40.08]That is good news for American companies, [04:43.44]but bad for companies that use the metals, [04:46.88]such as manufacturers of beer and air conditioning equipment. [04:52.72]The American International Automobile Dealers Association [04:57.56]said the tariffs could cause the cost of a car to rise a lot. [05:04.40]Wendy Cutler, a former U.S. trade official, [05:08.04]noted "What benefits one industry can hurt another. [05:13.52]What saves one job can jeopardize another." [05:18.44]Cutler is now vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute. [05:25.52]American companies said steel tariffs announced in 2002 [05:30.80]by then President George W. Bush destroyed 200,000 U.S. jobs. [05:39.48]The new tariffs were requested by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross [05:44.92]and White House trade adviser Peter Navarro. [05:50.12]White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders [05:53.96]said the decision "shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone," [05:59.32]saying that the president had been talking about it for many years. [06:05.24]Trump has long accused China and others of what he calls unfair trade. [06:12.96]But some Republicans in Congress were angry. [06:16.96]Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska said the tariffs were a "tax increase on American families." [06:25.72]Sasse noted that he would expect Democratic Party lawmakers [06:30.44]to set trade tariffs, not Republicans. [06:35.12]House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, said through a spokesman [06:41.60]he hoped Trump would consider the effects of a trade war. [06:47.04]I'm Bryan Lynn. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM