“Thanks for taking my call this morning! If we could arrange for Administrator Pruitt to come to batting practice before July 5ths game, that would be wonderful!” Madeline Morris, then an E.P.A. aide, wrote in an e-mail to the Nationals’ vice president for community engagement, Gregory McCarthy.

. . . and, in general, the lifestyle of a person whose net worth is many multiples of his. According to aides who spoke to the Times, Pruitt “told them that he expected a certain standard of living akin to wealthier Trump Cabinet members” and gave the impression he “saw them as foot soldiers in achieving that lifestyle.” The problem, one added, is that “he is not a billionaire. But he sincerely thinks he is.”

If you would like to receive the Levin Report in your inbox daily, click here to subscribe.

Trump goes ahead and hits China with fresh tariffs

Because he apparently still believes trade wars are “good” and “easy to win,” on Friday, Donald Trump announced tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese imports, with the first $34 billion going into effect July 6. And we’ll give you two guesses for how Beijing responded but you’ll probably get it in one.

“We will immediately introduce taxation measures of the same scale and with the same intensity,” the country’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement. “All of the economic and trade achievements previously negotiated by the two parties will also be invalid.” While China didn’t specify which goods it would target, the list is expected to include manufactured goods and agricultural products, hitting Trump where it hurts (i.e. states that voted for him). “It’s foolish on the part of the Trump team,” Wang Huiyao, director of the Beijing-based Center for China and Globalization and an adviser to China’s cabinet, told Bloomberg. “He needs China’s collaboration on North Korea and he gives the impression that he’s burning the bridge after crossing the river.”

Strangely, the administration still seems to believe that it not only has nothing to lose but that other countries won’t hit back in response. After announcing that in addition to the tariffs, the U.S. will impose investment restrictions on China within the next two weeks, U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer told Fox Business, “Our hope is that it doesn’t lead to a rash reaction from China. We hope that this leads to further negotiations and we hope it leads to China changing its policies, at least with respect to us, and opening up their market.”

Meanwhile, the fact that the punitive measures will hurt Americans doesn’t appear to have sunk into Trump’s head. “Imposing tariffs places the cost of China’s unfair trade practices squarely on the shoulders of American consumers, manufacturers, farmers, and ranchers. This is not the right approach,” said Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in a statement.

But wait, there’s more!

Amazingly, Trump is apparently serious about the idea of hitting foreign cars with 25 percent tariffs, which he now wants to get done before the midterm elections, believing it will play well with his base. “Trump sees the auto tariffs as part of his midterm strategy, a way to position Republicans and the White House as pro-worker,” a senior administration official told Politico. “He views it as part of the broader story about to helping to revitalize the American-based economy.”