No change in trade policy, spending time at golf course in Florida – President Donald Trump

No change in trade policy, spending time at golf course in Florida – President Donald Trump

West Palm Beach, Florida — Two days after shaking the economy with a massive tariff announcement, President Donald Trump claimed there would be no change in his trade policy as he immersed himself in his golden lifestyle in Florida.

On Friday morning, he arrived at Mar-a-Lago, his private club, and then went to his golf course a few miles away, posting on social media, "It's a great time to be rich."

Many supporters stood by the roadside as Trump, wearing his signature red "Make America Great Again" hat and a white polo shirt, walked along a row of palm trees. They waved at him, and Trump waved back, which has become a routine during his weekend stays in the city.

Trump has often managed to avoid scandals or mistakes that could harm other politicians, but his decision to spend the weekend at his golden estate could test the patience of Americans whose retirement savings are flying away with stock market downturns.

Due to the tariffs, prices could increase by thousands of dollars per year, and economic growth could slow, with concerns of a potential recession. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Friday that the tariffs were "much larger than expected" and "much more likely" to cause inflation—at least in the short term and potentially long-term as well.

However, Trump described his policies as a painful but necessary step to encourage companies to move their operations to the U.S. He was busy defending himself on Truth Social, his social media platform, and firmly stated that he would stick with his policies.

Although experts have sharply criticized Trump's tariffs, he has garnered some support on TikTok. He shared a video claiming, "Trump is destroying the stock market" and "he's doing it on purpose," calling it a "secret game" and "it could make you rich."

The video suggested that his goal was to pressure the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, which Trump explicitly called for later that morning.

After foreign leaders scrambled to respond to Trump's announcement, the president attempted to seek a compromise and mentioned the possibility of making deals. He spoke with Vietnam's leader, To Lam, and claimed that if they could strike a deal with the U.S., Vietnam would want to remove tariffs on American products.

Meanwhile, Trump celebrated a new U.S. jobs report from March, which added 228,000 jobs, surpassing expectations. Although this number reflects the economy before the tariff announcement, Trump claimed it as a success of his policies.

"Hang in there," he wrote. "We can't lose!!!"