Donald Trump is “deadly serious” about slapping tariffs on imports from Mexico, his chief of staff said on Sunday, even though the president “intentionally left the declaration sort of ad hoc” amidst fears of damage to the US economy if he follows through on his threat.

Mexico could tighten migration controls to defuse Trump tariffs threat Read more

Speaking to Fox News Sunday, acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney acknowledged there are no concrete benchmarks being set to assess whether Mexico is acting to reduce numbers of migrants from Central America entering the US via Mexican territory enough to satisfy the White House.

“We intentionally left the declaration sort of ad hoc,” he said. “So, there’s no specific target, there’s no specific percent, but things have to get better. They have to get dramatically better and they have to get better quickly.”

He said the idea was to work with the Mexican government “to make sure that things did get better”.

Trump claims Mexico has taken advantage of the US for decades but that the abuse will end when he slaps tariffs on Mexican imports next week in a dispute over illegal immigration. He tweeted on Sunday: “America has had enough.”

The president said last week that he will impose a 5% tariff on Mexican goods on 10 June to pressure the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador to act on the issue of migrants. Trump said the import tax will increase by 5% every month through October, topping out at 25%.

The president has been here before, issuing high-stakes threats over his frustration with the flow of migrants only to later back off. They include a threat earlier this year to seal the border with Mexico.

Republicans on Capitol Hill and allies in the business community have signaled serious unease with tariffs they warn will raise prices for consumers and hurt the economy. Some see the threat as a play for leverage and doubt Trump will follow through.

Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana on Sunday called the tariffs a “mistake” and said it’s unlikely Trump will actually impose them. The president “has been known to play with fire, but not live hand grenades,” Kennedy said on CBS’s Face the Nation.

“It’s going to tank the American economy,” he said. “I don’t think the president’s going to impose these tariffs.”

Mexican officials are due to meet later this week with secretary of state Mike Pompeo in a bid to come to a resolution. López Obrador hinted on Saturday that concessions could be forthcoming.

“I think what the president said, what the White House has made clear, is we need a vast reduction in the numbers crossing,” Kevin McAleenan, acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said on CNN’s State of the Union.

Mulvaney, who also spoke Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, said Mexico could take various steps to decrease the record numbers of migrants at the border. He suggested the government could seal its southern border with Guatemala, crack down on domestic terrorist organizations and make Mexico a safe place for migrants seeking to apply for asylum.

Mulvaney insisted that Trump is “absolutely, deadly serious” about tariffs and downplayed fears of their effect, saying he doubts business will pass on the costs to shoppers.

“American consumers will not pay the burden of these tariffs,” he said.

He also suggested the tariffs were an immigration issue, separate from the trade deal the US is trying to negotiate with Mexico and Canada.

The tariff threat comes just as the administration has been pushing for passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which would update the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Several top GOP lawmakers have expressed concerns that Trump’s tariff threat could upend that deal. The chairman of the Senate finance committee, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, said last week the tariffs would “seriously jeopardize” passage of the USMCA, which needs approval in Congress.