Trump: Our Negotiators Are ‘Soft and Weak … Stupid and Incompetent’
BRZEZINSKI: “So what policies would you put in place? What changes would you make to try to lift up the middle class in ways that has not been accomplished before? Specifically.”
TRUMP: “The biggest thing we have to do is new trade agreements. China is killing us, Mexico is killing us, Japan is killing us. Everybody is beating us. We have incompetent people negotiating trade. We are losing money at every single step. We don't make good deals anymore.”
SCARBOROUGH: “Give us an example.”
TRUMP: “And that's why, Joe, I go out to speak, and I think Mark will tell you, although he's only about 70 percent there. But I think he will say I get the biggest crowds, I get the biggest ovations. I'm getting very good poll numbers and nobody until yesterday thought I was running. I mean, we're doing - it's funny. It's funny.”
SCARBOROUGH: “Well, actually, that's what we said yesterday. But give us an example of how, because a lot of people believe that, right now, especially while we're negotiating the latest trade deal, that the United States is always out-negotiated on trade deals. Give me a good specific example of that.”
TRUMP: “Well, because China and all of these people, Mexico is the new China, by the way, Mexico is unbelievable, what they're doing with cars and with industry. They are taking our business like we're a bunch of babies. We don't have our best and our brightest negotiating for us. We have a bunch of losers, we have a bunch of political hacks. We have diplomats. And China puts the people -- hey, look. I know the smartest guys on Wall Street. I know our best negotiators. I know the overrated guys, the underrated guys, the guys that nobody ever heard of that are killers, that are great. We gotta use those people. We're using people –“
SCARBOROUGH: “So who would be a guy?”
TRUMP: “I'll give you an example.”
SCARBOROUGH: “Who's your Secretary of Treasury?”
TRUMP: “Joe, let me give you an example. Caroline Kennedy, I have seen 60 Minutes. She goes in, she says to the White House, oh, I would love a job. Would you like to be? Ambassador to Japan. Really, wow. She's like a negotiator for us in Japan. It's ridiculous. Japan is doing a number on us with the yen. You know, they just devalued the yen yet again.”
SCARBOROUGH: “Right.”
TRUMP: “We don't have people that know what's going on.”
SCARBOROUGH: “So, again, specifically, who -- give us a name on Wall Street that you might consider as a Secretary of Treasury, that'll be a tough negotiator.”
TRUMP: “I'll tell you what, I'd like guys like Jack Welch. I like guys like Henry Kravis. I'd love to bring my friend Carl Icahn. I mean, we have people that are great. We have people that are better than any of their negotiators.”
SCARBOROUGH: “That are tough.”
TRUMP: “We don't use them, Joe. We use people that are soft and weak and frankly stupid and incompetent.”
