Trump Today: President threatens to tax Harley-Davidson ‘like never before’ if it shifts production overseas

This column provides a daily update on key presidential actions as well as comments, whether spoken aloud or on Twitter, by President Trump. Like the stock market, the deadline for Trump Today action is 4 p.m. Eastern time, even as we acknowledge that substantive news can and does occur after hours.

President Donald Trump threatened to tax motorcycle-maker Harley-Davidson “like never before” if the company moves production overseas, as he hosted members of Congress at the White House and again criticized Rep. Maxine Waters.

HARLEYS SHOULD ‘NEVER’ BE BUILT ABROAD, TRUMP SAYS

Trump criticized Harley-Davidson  for the second day in a row, after the iconic American brand said it would shift more production abroad to avoid European Union tariffs. Harley made the announcement Monday, saying it was due to increased costs from the EU’s retaliatory tariffs against the Trump administration’s own tariffs on imported aluminum and steel.

Trump accused the company of using the tariffs as an excuse to move overseas. “I don’t like that,” he said as he met members of Congress in the cabinet room of the White House. “I’ve been very good to Harley.”

On Twitter, Trump said the motorcycles “should never be built in another country — never!” In a separate tweet, Trump said, “Harley must know that they won’t be able to sell back into U.S. without paying a big tax!” Trump said in another tweet. The motorcycle-maker’s shares fell slightly in Tuesday-afternoon trading.

CELEBRATES TRAVEL BAN

Trump tweeted “wow!” in reaction to the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision upholding the third version of his travel ban, and called the ruling “a moment of profound vindication” in a statement. “We have to be tough and we have to be safe and we have to be secure,” he said.

The court ruled that the ban on people from several Muslim-majority countries was legal. The American Civil Liberties Union, in a tweet, called the court’s ruling among one of the most shameful chapters of U.S. history.

BORDER WALL ON LUNCH MENU

Trump’s lunch with members of Congress was expected to include a discussion about funding his proposed border wall, Politico said. The meeting comes as a compromise immigration bill pushed by Republican leaders is slated for a vote on Wednesday. The bill includes money for the wall, but is expected to fall short of passage.

Trump has consistently pressed for funding the wall. Last week, he said the GOP should stop “wasting their time” on immigration policy until after the midterm elections in November, when he predicted Republicans would pick up more seats.

ANOTHER ATTACK ON WATERS

Trump continued a feud with Rep. Maxine Waters, a California Democrat who over the weekend called for “push back” on cabinet members seen in public. In a tweet, he called Waters “the face of the Democrats.”

Top Democrats, meanwhile, pushed back against Waters’ comments, with Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer saying Monday her approach was “not American.” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi tweeted that “Trump’s daily lack of civility has provoked responses that are predictable but unacceptable.”