Biden told reporters on Thursday that he hopes President-elect Donald Trump “rethinks” his Day 1 proposal to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada, calling it a “counterproductive thing to do.”

Biden said that  Trump’s proposed 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada would harm relations between the United States and Mexico and Canada, telling reporters on Thanksgiving: “We have an unusual situation in America. We’re surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the two allies: Mexico and Canada. And the last thing we need to do is screw up those relationships. I think we’ve got them in a good place. I hope he rethinks it. It’s a counterproductive thing to do, and would screw up the nation’s relationships with its neighbors to the north and south.”

On Monday, Trump proposed implementing tariffs of Mexican and Canadian goods if leaders in those nations don’t do more to stop illegal border incursions into the United States. The President-elect said this week that he plans to sign an executive order when he takes office on Jan. 20, 2025, that would charge Mexico and Canada with a 25% tariff on all products those nations send to the United States, in an effort to stop the flow of drugs entering the country and illegal border crossings.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social: “Thousands of people are pouring through Mexico and Canada, bringing crime and drugs at levels never seen before  Right now, a caravan coming from Mexico, composed of thousands of people, seems to be unstoppable in its quest to come through our currently open border.” He said the tariffs would stay in effect until the flow of fentanyl and other drugs cease and “illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country.”

Trump also vowed to charge China with an additional 10% tariff on top of any additional tariffs on products coming into the U.S., arguing the country wasn’t doing enough to stop the flow of illicit drugs.

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