At his second cabinet meeting during his second term, President Donald Trump declared that U.S. tariffs are directly responsible for nearly $8 trillion in investment commitments, emphasizing the economic impact of his trade policy during his first 100 days in office.
The statement came as department heads gathered to mark the president’s milestone, coinciding with new data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showing a 0.3% annualized decline in real GDP for the first quarter of 2025. The administration attributed the downturn to the lingering effects of former President Joe Biden’s economic policies.
Despite the GDP dip, Trump remained focused on foreign and domestic investment gains, highlighting the long-term impact of his aggressive tariff strategy. “We’re up to close to $8 trillion I believe I can say,” Trump stated during the meeting, adding that the number is expected to rise as more commitments become public.
The White House backed the president’s claim with a list of investments released on Tuesday, labeling it a “$5+ trillion” commitment. Trump has recently mentioned the figure being as high as $7 trillion. Tuesday marked the first time he publicly cited the $8 trillion benchmark.
Trump specifically pointed to tech manufacturing giant Samsung’s U.S. expansion, attributing it to tariffs. “They’re going to build massive facilities in the United States. If we didn’t do the tariffs, they wouldn’t be doing that,” he said.
Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnik echoed Trump’s assessment, referencing a $165 billion semiconductor facility under construction by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Lutnik said the project already employs 4,000 Americans, with expectations of 40,000 construction jobs and 20,000 long-term positions. “This is all driven by your tariff policies,” Lutnik told the president.
Trump’s remarks underline his administration’s strategy of using tariffs not only as leverage in trade negotiations but as a tool to bring manufacturing and technology jobs back to American soil.
