'World's Leading Trump Whisperer' Sheinbaum Gets Another 90 Days for Tariff Talks

On the eve of President Donald Trump's dramatic tariff hike on countries around the world, the U.S. leader and his Mexican counterpart on Thursday announced another 90-day extension in trade deal negotiations.

"I have just concluded a telephone conversation with the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, which was very successful in that, more and more, we are getting to know and understand each other," Trump wrote on his Truth Social network. "The complexities of a Deal with Mexico are somewhat different than other Nations because of both the problems, and assets, of the Border."

"We have agreed to extend, for a 90 Day period, the exact same Deal as we had for the last short period of time, namely, that Mexico will continue to pay a 25% Fentanyl Tariff, 25% Tariff on Cars, and 50% Tariff on Steel, Aluminum, and Copper," Trump added. "Additionally, Mexico has agreed to immediately terminate its Non Tariff Trade Barriers, of which there were many."

Sheinbaum wrote on the social media site X that she "had a very good call with the president of the United States, Donald Trump. We avoided the tariff increase announced for tomorrow and secured 90 days to build a long-term agreement through dialogue."

Trump had threatened to impose a 30% tariff on Mexico, the United States' largest trading partner, on Friday, absent an agreement. However, for the third time, Sheinbaum negotiated her way around his ultimatums. In March, the last time she did so, The Washington Post's Mary Beth Sheridan and Leila Miller dubbed her "the world's leading Trump whisperer."

The aplomb with which Sheinbaum has handled Trump has earned her widespread praise in Mexico and beyond, and has strongly contributed to her 80% approval rating.

"Sheinbaum secures another pause on Trump's tariffs," Mexico City-based journalist José Luis Granados Ceja said on X. "Given yesterday's positive economic news that shows a growing economy, shrinking inequality, and a drop in poverty, the Mexican government is accomplishing extraordinary things in a very unpredictable situation."

Eric Michael Garcia, the Washington, D.C. bureau chief of the British news site The Independent, said on X that "Sheinbaum continues to run circles around Trump for the exact opposite reason the [European Union] conceded to Trump: The success of Trump's presidency relies on the border with Mexico. She can open the spigot anytime he crosses her."

Mexican journalist Jorge Armando Rocha opined on X that "among all nations, Mexico has the best possible trade agreement with the United States."

Some observers warned against Mexican triumphalism or complacency, given Trump's volatility and past threats against Mexico—including talk of an invasion targeting drug cartels. The United States has launched three major invasions and even more minor incursions into Mexico, including an 1846-48 war waged on false pretenses that ended with the U.S. taking more than half of Mexico's territory.

As Trump makes progress in talks with one U.S. neighbor, he's making threats against another. On Wednesday, Trump said that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's decision to conditionally recognize Palestinian statehood "will make it very hard" to complete a trade deal ahead of the president's August 1 deadline to avoid 35% tariffs on all imported Canadian goods not covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday that "at some point this afternoon or later this evening" Trump will order tariffs against dozens of nations with which agreements have not been reached.

Although Trump administration officials promised "90 deals in 90 days," only around half a dozen tariff agreements have been reached, including with the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

In stark contrast with these agreements, Trump also imposed a 50% tariff on Brazil for prosecuting his friend and fellow far-right insurrection inciter Jair Bolsonaro, widely known as the "Trump of the Tropics" during his tenure as president of the South American giant.