Trump Slaps 15-20% Tariffs on 60 Nations, Triggers Global Trade War & D.C. Guard Deployment

This is Pulse News Radio. have a nice day. I’m Talia Menashe, and we open with a triple-barreled burst of breaking news that is rattling capitals from Brussels to Beijing.

First, the White House. At 02:14 this morning, President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14257—what aides are calling the “America First Reciprocity Act.” In one stroke, the order slaps sweeping new tariffs ranging from 15 to 20 percent on goods arriving from more than 60 nations. The list reads like an atlas of America’s biggest trading partners: the entire European Union, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, and even traditional allies such as Australia and New Zealand. Speaking from the Roosevelt Room, the President said the levies are punishment for what he labeled “decades of lopsided deals.”

[Clip—Trump]

“We subsidize the world, we protect the world, and what do we get? Unfair barriers, currency manipulation, and oil money flowing straight to the Kremlin. That ends today.”
The reference to Russian oil was unmistakable. Senior officials confirm a second, classified annex to the order singles out India for “special scrutiny,” citing New Delhi’s continued purchase of discounted Urals crude. One paragraph leaked to us reads: “Any nation that undermines multilateral sanctions on Moscow will face proportionate economic consequences.”

Reaction overseas was swift and scathing. In Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the measures “economic vandalism” and vowed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. bourbon, Harley-Davidsons, and soybeans by sundown tomorrow. Tokyo’s trade minister, Taro Kono, warned the move could “derail the fragile global recovery,” while South Korea’s Hyundai—America’s sixth-largest car supplier—suspended all U.S.-bound shipments pending legal review.

Meanwhile, the diplomatic ripples are becoming waves. Barely six hours after the tariffs were announced, India’s National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval, was spotted striding into the Kremlin for an unscheduled meeting with President Vladimir Putin. Russian state television showed the two men shaking hands beneath golden chandeliers, with Doval reportedly carrying a handwritten note from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sources in the Indian embassy tell us Modi’s message stresses “strategic autonomy” and proposes a rupee-ruble payment mechanism to circumvent future U.S. sanctions. Moscow, for its part, promised “additional volumes of crude at friendly prices” and accelerated delivery of the S-400 air-defense systems. One Kremlin aide quipped, “If Washington wants a trade wall, we’ll build an energy bridge.”

Back on the home front, the President’s domestic agenda is taking a muscular turn. Citing a 42-percent spike in juvenile gun violence since January, Mr. Trump has invoked the Insurrection Act and ordered the D.C. National Guard onto the capital’s streets. At 05:00, convoys of Humvees rumbled across the Potomac, setting up checkpoints at 12 key intersections from Anacostia to Adams Morgan. Brigadier General Lisa McCord, commanding the 547th Military Police Battalion, told reporters the mission is “preventive deterrence” and not martial law.

[Clip—McCord]

“Our soldiers will partner with MPD officers, provide high-visibility patrols, and assist in youth-outreach programs. We are here at the mayor’s request and we will leave when the threat subsides.”
But Mayor Muriel Bowser pushed back, saying she was informed only minutes before the deployment. In a dawn tweet, Bowser called the move “political theater” and warned it could “exacerbate tensions rather than ease them.” Civil-rights groups are already filing emergency motions in federal court, arguing the Insurrection Act cannot be applied without a formal request from local authorities.

Overhead, Black Hawk helicopters circled the National Mall as sunrise painted the sky a bruised orange. Commuters on Constitution Avenue paused to film armored vehicles idling beside the Smithsonian Castle. A 19-year-old bystander, who gave his name only as Jamal, told our reporter the scene felt surreal.

[Clip—Jamal]

“One day we’re talking about summer jobs, the next day it’s Humvees outside the Metro stop. Makes you wonder what decade we’re living in.”

The White House insists the tariff order and the D.C. deployment are separate events. Yet senior staffers privately acknowledge both are designed to project strength ahead of next month’s mid-terms. One aide put it bluntly: “The President wants headlines that say ‘tough on trade, tough on crime.’”

As markets reel and diplomats scramble, we’ll keep you updated on every angle—trade, energy, and security. From Pulse News Radio, I’m Talia Menashe . Stay with us; coming up, how European automakers are already re-routing supply chains to dodge the new U.S. levies.
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