Trump tariffs could be bargaining chip or economic bomb

Key economic indicators flashed recession warnings as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on February 25 that the US was in a private sector recession and that the Trump administration’s goal was to “re-privatize” the economy.

“The previous administration’s over-reliance on excessive government spending and overbearing regulation left us with an economy that may have exhibited some reasonable metrics but ultimately was brittle underneath,” Trump’s chief economic official said in a speech.