Trump blames Europe for U.S. economic problems

In a recent interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, former President Donald Trump made controversial statements about the European Union. He claimed the EU has “raped and pillaged” the United States, blaming allies for some of the nation’s economic issues. When asked about a possible recession, Trump avoided giving a direct answer. Instead, he focused on the potential for a strong economy, stating, “We’re gonna have the strongest economic country in the history of the world.” He mentioned that the U.S. is benefiting financially but acknowledged that this comes at a cost to relationships with European allies. Trump described himself as a "nationalist" and highlighted his discussions with Ukrainian and Russian leaders about the war. He faced questions on how interest rates might go down while the country has significant debt, to which he responded that the U.S. is under-leveraged in asset value but over-leveraged in cash flow. He criticized the EU for trade imbalances, claiming the U.S. cannot sell cars to Europe but imports many. His strong remarks come after imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, which led to retaliatory actions from the EU. The president threatened additional tariffs on alcoholic beverages if EU tariffs on American products were not lowered. Trump has a history of controversial comments about the EU, previously stating that it was created to take advantage of the U.S.