‘let's See How The President Weighs That’: Lutnick Says Trump Will Decide Today On Canada, Mexico Tariffs

President Donald Trump has yet to decide whether to go forward with tariffs on Canada and Mexico that are scheduled to go into effect just after midnight, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in an interview on CNN Monday morning.

Trump has threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico beginning Tuesday morning over complaints that the countries are not doing enough to stop undocumented migrants and fentanyl coming across their borders, keeping the North American economy and financial markets on edge as the deadline fast approaches.

Lutnick said Canada and Mexico have done a good job at stopping undocumented migrants from entering the United States but the two countries still need to do more to stop fentanyl flows that cause thousands of deaths each year.

Lutnick said he would be discussing the issue with the president on Monday afternoon.

"I'll be sitting across the table from the president pointing out that they have done a good job on the border, but they haven't done enough on fentanyl," Lutnick said. "And he's got to decide how he wants to play [it]. And that's the key to the president's advisers. We are around telling them all the details. But then he's going to decide this afternoon and tomorrow we're going to put out those tariffs."

The main thing that Mexico and Canada need to do is "get the [drug] cartels to stop sending in fentanyl," Lutnick added.

"He knows they've done a good job on the border. They haven't done enough on fentanyl. Let's see how the president weighs that today. We're going to talk about it all day today. And then he'll let everybody know tomorrow what the plan is," Lutnick said.