JD Vance, Peter Navarro And 'Sometimes' Donald Trump Blocked Proposed US-India Trade Deal: Republican Senator

(MENAFN- Live Mint) US Vice President JD Vance and White House economic adviser Peter Navarro were behind blocking a proposed trade deal between the United States and India, a new report citing leaked audio recordings of Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz has said.

According to the report by Axios, these claims were made by Cruz during a private meeting with donors, highlighting cracks within the President Donald Trump administration.

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The audio recordings, reportedly acquired by Axios, also criticise President Donald Trump, saying he too“sometimes” blocked the proposed US-India trade deal.

The 10-minute audio clip, which Axios said was shared with them by a Republican source, slammed the trade policy of the Trump administration, which has shook countries around the globe.

The Axios report assumes signifiance as it comes amid trade negotiations between India and the United States underway for quite some time now. The negotiations became even more significant after Donald Trump administration in the US imposed additional 25% tariffs on India for doing oil trade with Russia, taking the total duties to 50%.

Senator Cruz warned Trump about tariffs

Senator Cruz, according to Axios report, also told donors that he and a number of other Republican senators attempted to dissuade President Trump from launching the Liberation Day tariffs on countries around the world in April last year.

Senator Cruz reporteldy warned Trump that tariffs could lead to higher prices and damage retirement savings accounts for Americans, which would lead to the Republican party losing both the House and the Senate to the opposition Democrats in the 2026 midterm elections.

Also Read | Sen. Ted Cruz criticized Trump tariffs, mocked Vance in donor meetings: Report

Cruz, as per the report, recounted a late-night call withTrump shortly after the tariffs were announced in early April 2025. He said several senators urged Trump to reconsider.“That call did not go well,” Cruz said in the recording obtained by Axios, describing Trump as“yelling” and“cursing.”

“Trump was in a bad mood,” Cruz added.“I've been in conversations where he was very happy. This was not one of them.” Cruz said he warned Trump that economic fallout would devastate Republicanspolitically.

“If we get to November of [2026] and people's 401(k)s are down 30% and prices are up 10–20% at the supermarket, we're going to go into Election Day, face a bloodbath,” Cruz said, according to Axios.

Vance, a pawn of conservative podcaster Tucker Carlson

In the recording, Cruz labels Vice President Vance as a pawn of conservative podcaster Tucker Carlson. He also accuses Carlson of promoting antisemitism and an anti-Israel foreign policy in their well-publicised spats.

Cruz repeatedly ties Vance to Carlson and accusing him of advancing the podcaster's anti-interventionist foreign policy. "Tucker created JD. JD is Tucker's protege, and they are one and the same," Cruz said, according to Axios report.

Who is Ted Cruz?

Cruz was elected to the US Senate in 2012, becoming the first Hispanic American to serve as a US senator from Texas. In the Senate, he has consistently taken conservative positions on economic and social policy.

Cruz is widely thought to be considering a run for the Presidency in 2028 in an effort to challenge Trump and Vance's control over the party.

Also Read | Ted Cruz makes gaffe during Senate hearing: 'Let's stop attacking pedophiles'

Senator Cruz lost to Trump in Republican party's nominee for President race in 2016. He has publically expressed his support for close ties of US with India.

"India and America are natural allies. We are working together more and more. India is the largest democracy on the face of the earth. We're blessed to have over a half million Indian-Americans living in the great state of Texas,” Cruz said on a visit to India in 2019.

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