Former President Donald Trump has appointed Peter Navarro as his senior counselor for trade and manufacturing, marking Navarro’s return to the political arena after his four-month prison term for contempt of Congress. The announcement came Wednesday via Trump’s posts on Truth Social, emphasizing Navarro’s role in shaping the administration’s trade and tariff policies during Trump’s first term.
A Key Architect of Trump’s Trade Policies
Navarro, a Harvard-educated economist and vocal critic of China’s trade practices, initially joined Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign as a trade adviser. He later led the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, where he was instrumental in advancing the administration’s “Buy American, Hire American” policy.
During Trump’s first term, Navarro helped impose tariffs on over $300 billion worth of Chinese goods and was deeply involved in renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement into the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and revising the U.S.-South Korea trade deal.
