With an estimated net worth between $5 billion and $7 billion and a penchant for coating every surface in the White House with what he claims to be 18-karat gold leaf paint, President Donald Trump isn’t exactly an expert on personal cost-cutting.
But after the uber-wealthy ex-real estate developer claimed that record-high toy prices caused by his tariffs are just fine because young girls “don’t need 37 dolls” and can make do with “two or three” instead, his official spokesperson was left scrambling when asked to defend the eyebrow-raising remarks.
Asked about Trump’s claim that Americans can “give up certain products” and limit toy purchases because tariffs have caused prices to go upon the 80 percent of toys on the U.S. market that are imported from China, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt first told reporters that the president’s comments were meant as an exhortation to buy more expensive American-made ones instead.
“Maybe you’ll pay $1 or two more, but you will get better quality, and you’ll be supporting your fellow Americans by buying American and that’s what the President was saying,” she said.
But when The Independent pressed her on whether it is appropriate for one of the wealthiest men in the country to be lecturing cash-strapped parents on how many dolls their sons or daughters need to own, Leavitt irately pivoted to recasting Trump’s wealth as a positive while ignoring the substance of the question.
