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Trump 2nd term live updates: Trump defends tariffs, declines comment on Ukraine aid

Trump said tariffs will be the "greatest thing we've ever done as a country."

Last Updated: March 9, 2025, 8:31 PM EDT

President Donald Trump is defending his decision to pause some tariffs to Canada and Mexico for another month -- a notable reversal after imposing historic levies on the key U.S. trading partners earlier this week, causing markets to tumble.

On Friday, Trump signed more executive orders at the White House before he convened a first-ever cryptocurrency summit with industry leaders.

Mar 06, 2025, 3:43 PM EST

Trump blames 'globalist companies' on market issues

After President Donald Trump signed an executive order that paused the tariffs on Canada and Mexico, the president claimed in the Oval Office that his decision did not have to do with the current stock market.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Mar. 6, 2025.
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

The president said he is not looking at the market and blamed "globalist companies" for the slump.

"The countries and companies that have been ripping us aren't particularly happy with what I'm doing," he said.

Mar 06, 2025, 3:24 PM EST

Trump tells Cabinet members they're in charge, not Musk: Sources

President Donald Trump convened a meeting Thursday morning to tell his Cabinet heads that they are in charge of the agencies and departments they oversee, not Elon Musk, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

Musk was in the room for the meeting when Trump told top officials that the billionaire's role is to make recommendations and not unilateral decisions -- whether it be about staffing decisions or policy matters, the sources said.

White House Senior Advisor to the President and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk departs the U.S. Capitol, Mar. 5, 2025, in Washington.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP

The meeting comes as Trump's Cabinet secretaries have privately expressed frustration about Musk and the mandates he has been giving that have caused mass confusion among the federal workforce.

-ABC News' Rachel Scott, Will Steakin and Katherine Faulders

Mar 06, 2025, 3:12 PM EST

Trump pauses tariffs on large number of Canadian goods: Officials

White House officials told ABC News that President Donald Trump has signed executive orders to amend the tariffs on Canada and Mexico that went into effect just two days ago to exclude all products in compliance with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Mar. 4, 2025, President Donald Trump, Mar. 3, 2025 and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Feb. 12, 2025.
Reuters/Getty Images

The pause will last until April 2.

-ABC News' Michelle Stoddart and Molly Nagle

Mar 06, 2025, 2:27 PM EST

Trump claims DOGE will use 'scalpel' instead of 'hatchet' to cut agencies

President Donald Trump said in a new post on his social media platform Thursday that a combination of DOGE and heads of federal agencies will take a "scalpel" approach when it comes to federal cuts rather than using a "hatchet."

Trump shared that he, his Cabinet secretaries and Elon Musk had a meeting Thursday.

White House Senior Advisor to the President and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk departs the U.S. Capitol, Mar. 5, 2025, in Washington.
Kent Nishimura/Reuters

"We're going to have these meetings every two weeks until that aspect of this very necessary job is done. The relationships between everybody in that room are extraordinary," he said.

-ABC News' Hannah Demissie

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