Under Biden, when Brainard headed the NEC, she used a "70% rule" to guide recommendations on tariffs and subsidies. "When China had a global share in excess of 70%, it was like a red flashing signal because the global supply chain was excessively dependent on China."

In the Obama years, Brainard was a top Treasury official. She says she urged tariffs to preserve then nascent- US solar industry. "We should have used the import surge tool, but that position was not accepted for reasons to do with broader foreign policy considerations."

Brainard: "When you erode the independence of the Federal Reserve, inflation will likely run higher for a period of time because people start to expect higher inflation. It becomes a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy."

Kudlow on global reaction to Trump tariffs: lot of people in the media wrote that all these countries were going to talk to China and walk away from the U.S. That didn’t happen. They didn’t go to China. It was like the global instinct was to go to America."

Kudlow on tariffs: "Let’s face it. A tariff is a tax, okay? I know everyone’s worried about inflation. I’m not. Tariffs historically are like taxes. They are recessionary. They are deflationary."

Kudlow on Trump/China: "For better or worse, Trump believes and still believes that he can do business with Xi Jinping on a very personal level. Trump is a trade hawk, but he wants to do business."

Kudlow on Trump's original "Liberation Day" tariffs: "Cockamamie is not a bad word [for the tariffs] and it came from Navarro’s shop. I think I’ve used that word, cockamamie, myself. I was trying to figure the thing out and I couldn’t for the life of me.

Thanks so much!

Thanks.