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Another day, another Donald Trump outburst.
It seems the US president doesn’t take too kindly to nicknames – despite dishing them out to opponents himself.
Last night, Trump was addressing reporters in Washington days after pulling back on plans to impose 50% tariffs on EU goods.
So when he was asked by one journalist for his response to Wall Street traders coining the term TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out), it’s safe to say it didn’t go down well.
Fighting back, he quipped ‘I chicken out? Oh, I’ve never heard that’ before rambling about reducing tariffs on goods imported from China.
His defensive side then revealed itself, telling the reporter: ‘But don’t ever say what you said. That’s a nasty question.
‘To me, that’s the nastiest question’.
What does TACO mean and why has it enraged Donald Trump?
No, it’s not the staple Mexican food.
TACO was first coined by Financial Times columnist Robert Armstrong to describe Trump’s pattern of imposing tariffs on countries before suddenly backing out, or reducing rates.
He told Axios: ‘Perhaps I was hungry, too.’
Professor David Dunn, professor of international politics at the University of Birmingham, told Metro the TACO soundbite was ‘too good to resist’ by the reporter who asked it.
‘He was clearly rattled, and rambled, and yet again Trump’s actions become the narrative of the story,’ he said.
‘Trump treats the presidency like his own Medieval court, with him as King Donald.
‘His psychology is extraordinary, so it is hard to tell how he has been left thinking and feeling following the TACO jibe. He changes his feelings from one minute to the next.’
US trade court blocks Trump’s tarrifs – what does it mean for his future plans?
In a further blow to Donald’s economic plans, a three-judge panel last night said he exceeded his authority when imposing tariffs on nearly every country under an emergency law.
In April, Trump upended decades of US foreign policy by bringing in new tariffs under a plan he said would ‘Make America Wealthy Again’.
He held up a large chart titled ‘Reciprocal Tariffs’ laying out how dozens of countries – and the European Union as a whole – will be affected.
Trump later backtracked and offered a 90-day pause to all nations except China, raising their tariffs to 125%.
But the court of International Trade judges had different ideas.
Trump’s bruised administration has appealed, adding: ‘It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency.’
Dr Dunn now predicts Trump will now lash out at so called ‘left wing judges’.
He added: ‘The court’s decision is highly predictable.
‘The only clear prediction that I have is that there will be more disruption, more destruction, and no strategy.
‘He’s instinctive, reactive and impulsive to whatever news comes his way.
‘What’s most certain is that we are in for a wild ride over these next three-and-a-half years.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
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