The public and private feuding over how to resolve America’s trade disputes comes as the president prepares to meet with China’s president and as the White House considers tariffs on cars.
WASHINGTON — President Trump’s trade war is stoking an internal fight among his top economic advisers, with officials sparring both publicly and behind the scenes over the White House’s approach to dealing with China, the European Union and other trading partners.
The disagreements spilled into view on Tuesday as Larry Kudlow, the director of the National Economic Council, accused Peter Navarro, a top trade adviser, of doing the president “a great disservice” by making hawkish comments about trade talks with China.
Mr. Kudlow said Mr. Navarro’s speech last week — which included a prediction that Mr. Trump would have the “courage” to reject a bad trade deal with China — was “not authorized” by the administration.
“I think Peter very badly misspoke,” Mr. Kudlow said on CNBC. “He was freelancing, and he’s not representing the president or the administration.”
He added, “I actually think he did the president a great disservice.”
The internal feuding comes at a pivotal moment, as Mr. Trump prepares to meet with President Xi Jinping of China at the Group of 20 summit meeting in Argentina this month and as the White House economic team considers whether to impose tariffs on cars from Europe, Japan and other nations.
Europe’s top trade negotiator, Cecilia Malmstrom, is expected to meet with the United States trade representative, Robert E. Lighthizer, on Wednesday to discuss a framework for beginning formal trade talks.
Mr. Trump’s trade advisers are so far split over the president’s desire to impose tariffs on foreign cars and car parts, with Mr. Kudlow and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin privately cautioning against such a move and Mr. Navarro pushing for tariffs as a way to gain greater concessions from Europe and Japan, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Mr. Kudlow, Mr. Mnuchin and others in the administration have also been encouraging Mr. Trump to make a trade deal with China and to forgo the additional tariffs he has threatened to impose on all Chinese imports. Mr. Navarro, in his speech last week, said China was not playing fair and was simply trying to get the United States to the table to improve its global image.
