Peter Navarro, President Donald Trump’s top trade official and the architect of his massively unpopular trade war and sweeping tariff plans, admits that the majority of economists do not agree with the administration’s stance that tariffs are actually “tax cuts.”

Tariffs are taxes paid by importers on goods and services as they enter the country, and those costs often make their way to consumers through higher prices. While some businesses initially absorbed the added expense when President Trump’s tariffs began, July’s wholesale prices jumped 0.9% — more than four times the 0.2% economists expected and the largest monthly increase in over three years — signaling that consumers will be bearing more of the burden.

Not according to Navarro, the Senior Counselor to the President for Trade and Manufacturing who was sentenced to prison for contempt of Congress after the first Trump administration.

“No tariffs, no tax cuts,” Navarro told CNBC on Thursday (video below), referring to the massive tax cut package— central to President Trump’s so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill”—that the administration claims will be partly offset by collected tariff revenue.

READ MORE: Inflation ‘Starting to Boil’: Dire Economic News for Trump — Worst in Three Years

“Are tariffs price hikes or tax cuts?” Navarro posed. “I say they’re tax cuts.”

“I mean, many, many economists would say that they’re tax hikes,” the CNBC host replied, “because ultimately, a consumer will pay for some of those increased prices.”

“Look,” a frustrated Navarro responded, “that debate has been going on since the first [Trump] term, and most economists just don’t agree with us.”

“The problem with most economists is they got it wrong the first time around, just, spectacularly wrong. So, who has credibility here? The Trump administration, or the economists?”

The CNBC host continued, saying, “we’re hearing from retail companies about passing on higher prices to the consumer. Who do you see is paying for all of these tariffs that are coming in? I mean, it’s either the people who buy the stuff, the people who make the stuff, or the people who sell the stuff.”

Navarro was quick to respond.

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“It’s the foreigners, the exporters who are heavily dependent on this market, and we see this clearly in the data,” he claimed, contrary to multiple reports that show importers and retailers are increasingly passing on the tariff costs to consumers.

“We’ve collected over $100 billion in tariffs already,” he continued. “We’ve had zero inflation from that.”

Experts disagree.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has said Trump’s tariffs will add about four-tenths of a point onto inflation, according to Reuters. Wholesale prices in July spiked 0.9%, far higher than expected.

Watch the video below or at this link.

NAVARRO: Are tariffs price hikes or tax cuts? I say they’re tax cuts

EISEN: I mean, many economists would say they are tax hikes because ultimately a consumer will pay for some of those increased prices

NAVARRO: Most economists just don’t agree with us. Who has credibility… pic.twitter.com/PUiAUF9XoA

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 14, 2025

READ MORE: Dr. Oz: God Gave Medicaid Users a Desire to ‘Change the World’—Not Watch TV

Dr. Mehmet Oz, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, disparaged “able-bodied” Medicaid recipients, alleging they spend hours each day watching television or engaging in other “leisure-time” activities instead of pursuing what he called their God-given desire to change the world. He asked why anyone would question the government would not want to get people to be wealthy.

The vast majority of “able-bodied” people who use Medicaid, a government safety net medical insurance program that does not provide income to recipients, are already working at least one job. In the majority of families that use Medicaid, at least one adult is working a full-time job. The majority of Medicaid users are children, people living with disabilities, or the elderly, who are unable to work.

“You want people to actually get out of their homes and go do things,” Administrator Oz told CNBC on Thursday (video below). “An able-bodied person on Medicaid today watches about 6.1 hours of television, or just hangs out — leisure time.”

READ MORE: Inflation ‘Starting to Boil’: Dire Economic News for Trump — Worst in Three Years

“That’s a lot of time,” Oz insisted, claiming his data is sound.

“No one’s gonna be happy sitting at home 6.1 hours a day doing nothing,” he insisted.

“Your desire to go out and do something, to change the world, is given to you by God, the moment you’re born,” Oz proclaimed. “We want people to go out there and live their fullest lives, so asking people to go out and either volunteer at a position, get educated, get engaged with your community, or go get a job, and we’re gonna help you do that.”

Complaining about critics, some of whom say the new work requirements are counter-productive or designed to kick people out of Medicaid, Oz retorted, “I don’t understand how you could possibly say, that’s a bad thing for America, for us, not to want to get people to be wealthy, to go out there and change their own lives for the better.”

Last month, Dr. Oz declared that the Trump administration will no longer “tolerate” what he called a culture that makes it “easy to be sick in America.” Framing childhood illness as a failure of parenting and physical activity rather than medical need, Oz linked obesity to national security and warned that industries would be forced to cooperate—or face government retaliation.

Critics blasted Dr. Oz’s remarks.

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“So the ‘earnest effort to save Medicaid’ is shaming low-income Americans for watching TV, coming from the guy who made his millions off of people watching his shows,” noted Wall Street investment banker Evaristus Odinikaeze.

“This is pure class prejudice,” Odinikaeze charged. “The reality he ignores is that many Medicaid recipients are working poor, disabled, or caretakers, not lounging all day. Access to care keeps people healthy enough to work, care for family, and live with dignity. And cutting Medicaid isn’t about ‘saving’ it; it’s about gutting it so tax breaks for the wealthy can keep flowing.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

Mehmet Oz: “It is reprehensible to criticize the president on this I think very earnest effort to save Medicaid … an able-bodied person on Medicaid today watches about 6.1 hours of television or just hangs out — leisure time. That’s a lot of time.” pic.twitter.com/95RfnFEq0Y

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 14, 2025

READ MORE: Trump’s Kennedy Center Remarks Veer Into Grievances, False Claims, and Lessons on Grass

Image via Reuters 

Lowering inflation and reducing the cost of living were central to Donald Trump’s election. But polls now show Americans believe he’s failing on both fronts—and his approval rating on the issue is sinking fast.

CNN analyst Harry Enten on Wednesday warned, “This is an abject disaster for the President of the United States.”

“He’s 25 points underwater” on inflation, Enten told viewers. “My goodness gracious, that is where The Little Mermaid is, and he is matching The Little Mermaid. That’s how far underwater he is on the issue that got him elected.”

Thursday morning the tea leaves got worse for President Trump.

READ MORE: Trump Melts Down Over Elizabeth Warren’s Accusations

Wholesale prices in July skyrocketed 0.9%, against expectations of 0.2%. That’s more than four times what analysts thought would happen.

“The cost of wholesale goods and services — where rising inflation tends to show up first — posted the biggest increase in July in three years, possibly heralding a sizable acceleration in price hikes tied to higher U.S. tariffs,” MarketWatch reported.

“Wholesale prices rose far more than expected in July,” CNBC reported, “providing a potential sign that inflation is still a threat to the U.S. economy, a Bureau of Labor Statistics report Thursday showed.”

“The producer price index, which measures final demand goods and services prices, jumped 0.9% on the month, compared to the Dow Jones estimate for a 0.2% gain. It was the biggest monthly gain since June 2022.”

READ MORE: Trump’s Kennedy Center Remarks Veer Into Grievances, False Claims, and Lessons on Grass

Economists weighed in.

“Tariff churn is starting to burn and producers are starting to feel the inflation fire heat,” Chris Rupkey, chief economist at FwdBonds, wrote in commentary on Thursday, as CNN reported. “It will only be a matter of time before producers pass their higher tariff-related costs on to the backs of inflation-weary consumers.”

“The inflation simmering on the back burner has been brought forward and is clearly starting to boil,” Rupkey warned.

Watch the video below or at this link.

Harry Enten: “This is an abject disaster for the president. Voters on Trump on inflation — look at where his net approval stands today on inflation. My goodness gracious! Into the gutter we do. He is 25 points underwater! … the bottom line is that the wrath the voters feel for… pic.twitter.com/4r80DRdvlL

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 13, 2025

READ MORE: Trump’s Soviet-Era Slip-Up Alarms Experts

Image via Reuters