Peter Navarro told Newsmax on Tuesday that President Donald Trump's executive order earlier in the day calling for an investigation into how copper imports threaten U.S. national security and economic stability could help stem a "crisis" caused by the mineral being dumped into the U.S. marketplace.
The order directs Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to "initiate a Section 232 investigation under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. This investigation will assess the national security risks arising from the United States' increasing dependence on imported copper, in all its forms, and the potential need for trade remedies to safeguard domestic industry."
Navarro, Trump's senior adviser for trade and manufacturing, told "Rob Schmitt Tonight" the investigation will be similar to actions that resulted in Trump announcing earlier this month a 25% tariff on all aluminum and steel imports.
"Copper is the second-most important thing the Defense Department uses in order to make its weapons systems," Navarro said. "And we're in a situation now where worldwide, there's a glut of copper. There's [a] dumping [of] copper into our markets, and we've lost our ability to smelt copper, which is taking the ore and getting the raw copper and refine it into the products we need. And it's a serious thing.
"What's beautiful about President Trump is he sees this [like] three-dimensional chess. He sees all of these things going on, whether it's the rare earth [minerals] in Ukraine or the copper that we could be mining in Arizona and Alaska.
"And so today was one of a piece of 232 investigations like aluminum and steel, which we've already done. And Secretary Lutnick will in Trump time — which is to say, quickly — come up with recommendations as to whether we should tariff copper so that we can regain our ability," he said.
Navarro motioned with his hands coming together that the crisis surrounding the supply and demand for copper is on a collision course unless measures are taken.
"Because with this whole electrification of our economy, we're doubling copper demand in just 10 years," he said. "And we simply don't have the capabilities to produce that. And if we have a geopolitical problem out there with China or somewhere else, we can be squeezed. So the boss, he's on top of this, and the secretary [Lutnick] is going to be the tip of his spear."
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