U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to lift import duties on Brazilian beef, coffee and some other agricultural products that were hit by Trump’s 40% tariffs announced in July, the White House said, Reuters reported.
The order will affect Brazilian imports to the United States on or after Nov. 13 and could require a refund of duties collected on those goods, according to the text of the order released by the White House.
The White House has defended President Donald Trump after he called a reporter a “piglet” while she was questioning him about the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, saying the president’s comments reflected his candor and transparency, Reuters reported.
During a conversation aboard "Air Force One" last week that has since gone viral, Trump leaned over, pointed his finger at the reporter and said, "Shut up, you little piggy" as she pressed him with questions about a recently released Ephedrine email in which the New York financier claimed Trump "knew about the girls".
Questioned yesterday about the incident, White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt said that American voters re-elected Trump because of his candor and that reporters should appreciate his openness in answering questions.
""He calls out fake news when he sees it and gets frustrated with reporters who spread false information," Levitt said during a White House briefing, without providing evidence of the false information being reported. “But he also grants unprecedented access to the press and takes questions almost daily.“
On Tuesday in the Oval Office, Trump called another female reporter “a terrible person” after she asked visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and asked Trump why he hadn't released the Epstein files.
The Association of Professional Journalists (APJ) issued a statement this week condemning Trump's derogatory language toward reporters, noting his history of using derogatory language to discredit women.
”No one expects presidents to be the biggest fans of reporters,” said APJ executive director Carolyn Hendry. “But derogatory insults against female reporters should not be tolerated.”