US trade with the EU is out of whack. Trump needs to stay tough on tariffs to fix it

President Donald Trump is threatening tariffs on all imports from the European Union if a pact deal can t be reached by July The latest ruling from the Court of International Commerce is unlikely to slow down Trump s efforts given the multitude of loopholes and a achievable Supreme Court reversal The outcry from Europe is loud and multilingual and we need to ignore it Early in my tenure as ambassador to the EU during Trump s first term I invited members of the European Round Table to lunch I requested these CEOs of the biggest companies in Europe if they owned property in the U S All announced yes But how do you eat in America I urged What do you drive Do you bring your cars and food with you They laughed and explained that the reluctance for our products has nothing to do with U S food or manufacturing That those closed doors are European protectionism In short our cars are reliable our vegetables healthy they just want to win When it comes to business they have won for decades and that has to change TRUMP'S TOUGH POLICIES PUSH UK EU TO SIGNIFICANTLY EXPAND EXCHANGE AND DEFENSEWhen Trump spoke with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on May she called her conversation with him a good call and promised that Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively tacking on To reach a good deal we would need the time until July What the two in conversation means is that the U S is now asking them to dig deep into their red lines when it comes to us Europe loves a show without a aftermath I know what it s like to negotiate with them that they can move slower than a French escargot and the end is escargot-sized too It s nice It s cosmetic It s meaningless We ve gotten into transaction talks several times before with leaders like von der Leyen pleading for more time promising they ll get serious The reality is that they will have meetings but they will refuse to eliminate or even budge their red lines on deal for the United States They have to MUSK SAYS HE HOPES FOR 'ZERO TARIFFS ' FREEDOM OF BARGAIN ZONE BETWEEN US AND EUROPEAmerica deserves to be treated differently than any other trading partner and this counts for our asks with respect to China as well If we are going to take up the weapons the EU demands to back us on sanctions We want the EU to come down on the countries in their bloc that are operating in their self-interest as opposed to contributing to the alliance s economic interests We deserve reciprocity on transaction with concessions that are deep and material The U S deal deficit with the EU is ballooning It has gone from billion in to billion in If we include services last year the bargain deficit only reduces to billion U S presidents from Clinton to Trump were slapped with considerable transaction resistance from the EU Unwilling to concede even under unilateral pressure they cried out about what they perceived to be U S overreach and constantly chose multilateral solutions like reinforcing the WTO to find perceived stability and predictability When Trump disclosed in recent times They ve treated us very badly over the years he was spot on CHOSEN COUNTRIES TARGETED BY TRUMP TARIFFS SEEK NEGOTIATIONS CHINA SAYS 'NO WINNERS IN BUSINESS WARS'In when President Bill Clinton was busy with the banana wars arguing that American fruit importers should have freer access to the EU area the overall U S global deal deficit was at a then-record of nearly billion with over billion coming from the EU In George W Bush imposed steel tariffs to protect domestic producers during a year when our commerce deficit with the EU had risen to billion During Trump s first term our contract deficit went from billion in to billion in Now at billion you can understand why he s pissed off Trump is not negotiating he s deadly serious He wants a fair share of their sector and for the EU to treat us absolutely differently than any other trading partner because we ve earned it Not just from a decades-long transaction imbalance but from the guard guarantee America has provided for just as long They need to get over their stringent value-added tax healthcare and digital regulations and make choices that reflect our shared history Trump is doing something stark and immediate as the EU gets ready to play rope-a-dope with us yet again He is saying you can have all your regulations and juicy red European tomatoes but you have to pay tariffs Is that really worth it CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINIONEuropeans should be exposed to American products Trump is not forcing anyone to buy them just to have access If the way Americans do things don t meet with European taste or sensibility then let the territory speak for itself And vice versa All we re asking for is a fair shot WHICH COUNTRIES IMPOSE THE HIGHEST TARIFFS ON THE US I predict the EU will waltz us through their organic manicured gardens again with no consequence I think Trump predicts this too July will roll in with no substantial concessions made by the EU forcing the president to impose crucial tariffs They will cause extreme pain on both sides but negotiations between us are like current a horse Trump is bound and determined to not have them bend the knee but rather to treat us differently than other trading partners And when they do I m sure we will listen If Americans like European products better than ours fine American manufacturers will have to figure it out Readjusting the business imbalance is not a lot of money in the grand scheme of things but it s a sign of gratitude and respect for what the U S has done in the last years Multiple Europeans still claim that the Marshall Plan was sponsored by the U S for Europe s benefit and ours That s preposterous Think of it this way If two friends one richer one poorer go out to dinner regularly and the richer one consistently pays that makes sense If the poorer friend requirements surgery and the richer one offers to cover it that still makes sense Theirs is a valued meaningful friendship after all But if one day the poorer friend comes into wealth and has the opportunity to help the person who has supported him consistently for decades and then refuses there is a major complication The U S and the EU are those two friends No one wants this relationship to crumble and all eyes are on the EU because the world knows how long the U S has been picking up the check We re asking a friend a favor because it s entirely their turn to pay CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM GORDON SONDLAND