Peter Navarro, President Trump’s increasingly influential economic adviser, compared the Trump White House to the NFL’s New England Patriots, saying both have managed to have success despite an unusually high rate of employee turnover.
Speaking on Bloomberg TV, Mr. Navarro defended Mr. Trump’s management style and tolerance of open divisions among his staff, a day after National Economic Council chief Gary Cohn became the latest top Trump adviser to say he was leaving his post.
The Trump White House “is like the New England Patriots — they win their division every year but they do it with different personnel,” Mr. Navarro said.
The Patriots under coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady have won five Super Bowls and have captured their American Football Conference division 15 of the last 17 years.
Mr. Navarro, an assistant to the president and director of trade and industrial policy, scored a major win over Mr. Cohn on economic policy when President Trump announced plans last week to impose new tariffs of foreign steel and aluminum producers. Mr. Navarro told Bloomberg that he was “not on the list” to replace Mr. Cohn as the president’s senior economic aide.
Mr. Trump, whose tariff announcement surprised Mr. Cohn and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill, has yet to formally issue the new tariffs or indicate which countries would be targeted. The European Union has already vowed to retaliate against any new import duties.
Mr. Navarro said the release date had not been set but “it’s tracking very well for this week.”
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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