White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Tuesday that the tariff spat with China will continue and that the Trump administration was actually upping the ante in order to force a favorable trade deal.

Asked by a reporter what conditions would need to be met in order for Trump to talk to President Xi Jinping, Leavitt responded:

Well, look, I just spoke to the president about this, and he believes that China wants to make a deal with the United States, he believes China has to make a deal with the United States. It was a mistake for China to retaliate...

When America is punched, he punches back harder.

That's why there will be 104% tariffs going into effect on China tonight at midnight.

But the president believes that XI and China want to make a deal. They just don't know how to get that started and the president also wanted me to tell all of you that if China reaches out to make a deal, he'll be incredibly gracious, but he's going to do what's best for the American people.

Watch:

.@PressSec: "It was a mistake for China to retaliate. When America is punched, [President Trump] punches back harder. That's why there will be 104% tariffs going into effect on China tonight... If China reaches out to make a deal, he will be incredibly gracious." pic.twitter.com/9H76xQsmQA

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 8, 2025

Soon after her remarks, the Trump Rapid Response Team reminded Democrats that there were for tariffs before they were against them:

WATCH: @PressSec highlights Nancy Pelosi's own words on our unsustainable trade deficits:

"Well, @POTUS is finally answering her call 27 years later. Nancy Pelosi can thank President Trump today for the 104% retaliatory tariff that will be going into effect on China." https://t.co/QQP5vJoHRI pic.twitter.com/oHx9VzK0Oy

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 8, 2025

More: Begun, the Deal-Making Has: Other Nations Want to Talk and the Stock Market Is Coming Back

Trump Working to Rewrite Our Trade History With China After Decades of Disaster for American Workers

It’s been a fast-moving story as the stock markets continue to react to Trump’s policies (as of this writing, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 300 points):

Asked [on Monday] if he would be open to pausing the tariffs to allow for negotiations, Trump responded, "We're not looking at that." Trump said the U.S. has "many, many, countries that are coming to negotiate deals with us."

Earlier Monday, Trump threatened to veto a bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate last week that would require congressional approval of any tariffs the president would seek to impose. He also threatened to impose additional tariffs on China for retaliatory measures it took after Trump announced his plans last week.

A senior White House official told ABC News that this would be in addition to the 34% reciprocal tariff Trump announced last week and the 20% already in place, making for a potential total of 104%.

Asked if the White House was working on a “specific timeline” regarding negotiations with other countries, Leavitt said they would move at “Trump speed.”

"Well, we always move at Trump speed here at the White House, which is incredibly fast," she responded.

Keep it here at RedState for the latest developments.

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