A freshman Democratic senator openly acknowledged that President Donald Trump is successfully winning trade negotiations with several of the country’s largest trading partners.

“I’m wondering if you think right now Trump is winning the trade war. Do you agree with those who think he is?” Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) was asked by a Fox News reporter on Capitol Hill on Friday. “I mean, absolutely,” Fetterman responded without hesitation, pointing to the president’s recent trade agreement with the European Union. [see video below]

“And again, I’m a huge fan of Bill Maher. And I mean, I think he’s really one of the oracles for my party. And he acknowledged it. It’s like, hey, he thought that the tariffs were going to tank the economy and he acknowledged that they didn’t,” the senator added.

Fetterman reiterated his satisfaction with the new trade deal with the European Union and expressed optimism that the final agreement with China will also be acceptable.

Fetterman’s statement follows President Trump’s announcement Friday to impose new tariffs on several trading partners, including Canada, as part of his “Liberation Day” tariff strategy first unveiled in April.

The plan outlined a series of reciprocal tariffs targeting countries with significant trade deficits with the U.S. While the duties were initially delayed for two months to allow for negotiations, the administration has now moved forward with implementation.

The only exception was China, which agreed to negotiate after facing two weeks of steep tariffs—exceeding 100 percent—on most of its exports to the United States. Both nations have since agreed to temporarily suspend those elevated tariff rates while talks toward a final trade agreement continue.

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