Trump softens stance on tariffs and DOGE cuts amid mounting backlash

US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stands with him aboard Air Force One on his return to Washington

US President Donald Trump has reined in significant aspects of his economic and federal overhaul policies, diluting tariffs against Mexico and Canada and curbing the power of the US DOGE Service, following stiff opposition from within his own administration and from political backers, according to The Washington Post.

The unexpected policy changes occurred just days after Trump advocated for his "shoot-from-the-hip" agenda while making a prime-time address to US Congress. His words emphasised his dual priorities: transforming the international trade order with tariffs and reducing government spending with the assistance of the DOGE Service, which is being spearheaded by adviser Elon Musk.

But by the close of the week, Trump had tempered both initiatives, a testament to the political and economic forces that limit even his most far-reaching ambitions.

Trump's move to cut back DOGE's power was one of the week's most dramatic about-faces. Musk, one of Trump's biggest supporters of his 2024 campaign, has been leading a hard-hitting effort to shrink the federal workforce and get rid of overlapping government functions. The DOGE staff has already pushed through early retirements and large-scale firings, with more sweeping reductions in the works.

But mounting frustration from both within the Cabinet and Congress has retarded those efforts. At a closed-door Cabinet session on Thursday, Trump told agency heads that they — not Musk and his team — had final say over hiring and firing in their agencies.

“Secretaries can be pretty specific about who stays and who leaves," Trump later tweeted out on Truth Social. Musk replied by sharing Trump's tweet with his followers, describing the conference as "very productive”.

The session conveyed escalating internal tensions. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy called out Musk for DOGE's planned layoff, which he said would have involved air traffic controllers, endangering air safety. Musk rebuffed the alarm as a "lie," and a heated confrontation ensued, officials who are well-versed in the discussion say.

Other members of the Cabinet, such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Veterans Affairs Secretary Douglas A. Collins, also expressed opposition to the swiftness and depth of DOGE's cuts. They called for a more targeted effort to prevent political blowback, particularly from communities in harm's way.

The internal resistance has already led to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles stepping in to enhance coordination among Musk and other top advisers.

Trump also moderated his position on new tariffs announced earlier in the week. The president initially had put 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, targeting over $900

billion worth of goods. The action created shockwaves across world markets, causing stocks to plummet on Wall Street.

Though Trump insisted that the tariffs were needed to "make America rich again," he encountered increasing resistance from Republican legislators and business leaders. Automakers especially cautioned that the tariffs would discombobulate supply chains and increase the price of vehicles for consumers.

By Wednesday, Trump had provided temporary exemptions for auto parts and cars, suspending tariffs for at least a month. The following day, he further tuned the policy, declaring that tariffs would be imposed only on products not meeting the current North American free-trade agreement.

Although the moves were intended to offset economic backlash, markets were still shaky. Still, Trump held firm. "There'll always be changes and adjustments," he said Friday in remarks to reporters, describing the week's turmoil as part of the natural progression of his economic agenda.

The sudden flip-flops underscore the larger obstacles Trump is confronting as he goes about pushing radical changes. With Republicans in charge of Congress and a conservative bench, opposition from influential advisers, lawmakers, and corporate leaders is shaping the administration's course.

"There's no theatrics on the president's side. Trump is going to be the president, period," a White House official said. "The question is how does Elon respond to all of this … [and] the realization that he's not CEO of this company."

Political analysts say that Trump's ability to modulate on the fly is an indication of realistic leadership. "It's like Musk's starship that exploded — yeah, this is how you learn things," said a Trump supporter, Newt Gingrich. "He pushes very hard. He pauses and he learns, and then he pushes very hard again."

But the week's events show that even Trump's most grandiose schemes are vulnerable to the intricacies of political bargaining, fiscal constraints, and the ongoing task of maintaining his coalition.