Captured on the House floor in June 1996, the video showcases Pelosi urging her fellow lawmakers to confront the prevailing trade policies that have led to an increasing trade deficit with China. She particularly called for action to rectify the imbalance between American tariffs on Chinese imports and the elevated tariffs that China levies on U.S. goods.
Pelosi remarked that, regarding tariffs, it is noteworthy that the average Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff imposed by the United States on Chinese imports is two percent, in contrast to the average MFN tariff on American exports to China, which stands at 35 percent.
She subsequently inquired, “Is that reciprocal?” before labeling the U.S.-China trade relationship as a “job loser” for the United States.
Regarding employment, this represents the most significant and harsh deception of all. We lack market access, face exorbitant tariffs, and our exports are explicitly restricted, while China reaps the benefits of at least 10 million jobs from trade with the United States.
Pelosi highlighted that, at that time, the United States was benefiting from only 170,000 American jobs as a result of the relationship.
According to her, the reality is that trade between the United States and China results in job losses.
During a segment of his show on Friday, Fox News host Jesse Watters aired the clip.
The nearly three-decade-old video has resurfaced in light of President Trump’s recent implementation of reciprocal tariffs on China and various other countries this week. The majority of Democratic legislators, including Pelosi, have expressed their opposition to this strategy.
The imprudent tariffs imposed by Donald Trump will disrupt our economy, increase costs for consumers, and negatively impact diligent American families. This approach is not a strategy; rather, it represents the most significant tax increase on the American populace ever recorded. — Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) April 2, 2025
In his address on “Liberation Day” delivered in the Rose Garden of the White House on Wednesday, Trump declared the implementation of tariffs aimed at rectifying the trade imbalances faced by the United States on a global scale.
For many years, the United States has reduced trade restrictions with other nations, while those countries imposed significant tariffs on American goods and established unreasonable non-monetary obstacles that severely harmed our industries,” Trump stated.
Trump referenced the European Union, stating that the United States would implement a 20% tariff on its member countries, in contrast to the EU’s 39% tariff on American goods. He further noted that Japan would incur a 24% tariff, as opposed to the 46% it imposes on U.S. products, while China would face a 34% tariff, compared to the 67% it charges on exports from the United States.
Several left-leaning legislators appear to have altered their stance on tariffs and the issue of America’s trade deficits. Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., expressed on X on March 17: ‘It is not unexpected that Trump’s comprehensive tax and tariff plans would disproportionately benefit the wealthy while diminishing the financial well-being of working families. Individuals earning below $360,000 annually will see a significant increase in their taxes. Conversely, those in the top 1% need not be concerned; they will enjoy substantial savings.’
However, as demonstrated in the clip presented by Watters, Sanders was a strong proponent of tariffs and other protectionist measures in 2008 to prevent U.S. jobs from being outsourced.
Moreover, they have indicated that we should not be concerned about domestic manufacturing in America, as the focus should be on implementing a policy of unrestricted free trade. According to him, tariffs are unnecessary, a statement he made with sarcasm.
In further deriding this anti-protectionist viewpoint, he remarked, “What we require is to grant corporate America the liberty – the liberty – to dismiss American workers, individuals earning $15, $20, or $25 per hour, along with their healthcare and pensions – to cast them aside – under the belief, Madame President, that we will generate wealth and high-paying jobs in America while we close factories and relocate to China.”
