Major Controversies Surrounding Peter Navarro: A Detailed Timeline
A closer look at the most debated and controversial moments involving Peter Navarro.
Peter Navarro is an American economist who served as a senior counselor for trade and manufacturing to President Donald Trump since January 2025. Previously, during Trump's first administration, he directed the White House National Trade Council and the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy. He is known for his protectionist views on trade and his advocacy for policies aimed at strengthening American manufacturing.
1992: Ran for mayor of San Diego
In 1992, Peter Navarro ran for mayor of San Diego, finishing first in the primary but losing in the runoff to Susan Golding. He also paid fines for violating election laws.
2011: Published "Death by China"
In 2011, Peter Navarro and Greg Autry published "Death by China," arguing that China violates fair trade practices.
2012: Directed and produced "Death by China" documentary
In 2012, Peter Navarro directed and produced "Death by China", a documentary film based on his book, narrated by Martin Sheen.
2012: Release of Documentary on China
In his 2012 documentary, Peter Navarro claimed that China caused the loss of 57,000 US factories and 25 million jobs.
2015: Criticism of China's Currency Manipulation
Before 2015, some of Peter Navarro's views on China fit within the mainstream, such as criticism of Chinese currency manipulation.
November 2016: Response to economists warning against Trump's policies
In November 2016, Peter Navarro responded to 370 economists warning against Donald Trump's stated economic policies, dismissing their concerns.
May 2019: Navarro praises Trump's tariffs on Mexico
In May 2019, Peter Navarro stated that President Trump's decision to impose tariffs on Mexico, conditional on Mexico curbing illegal immigration to the United States, was "a brilliant move".
October 2019: Navarro defends trade war with China
In October 2019, Peter Navarro defended the trade war with China, stating that the United States was confronting a strategic rival. He advocated for trade restrictionist policies and worked with the DHS to combat counterfeited and pirated e-commerce goods.
February 2020: Hatfill becomes Navarro's advisor; promotes hydroxychloroquine
In February 2020, biologist Steven Hatfill became Peter Navarro's advisor regarding the coronavirus pandemic and promoted hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19, which Navarro later touted despite its unproven effectiveness.
May 2020: Navarro criticizes stay-at-home orders; blames China for virus
In May 2020, Peter Navarro criticized stay-at-home orders, arguing they would cause more deaths than the coronavirus. He frequently referred to the virus as the "China virus" or the "CCP virus" and accused the Chinese government of intentionally spreading the virus.
July 2020: Navarro touts study on hydroxychloroquine
In July 2020, Peter Navarro promoted a widely criticized study claiming hydroxychloroquine was an effective treatment for coronavirus, despite public health experts pointing out limitations and the failure of multiple randomized controlled trials to confirm its effectiveness.
July 2020: USA Today publishes Navarro's op-ed criticizing Fauci
In July 2020, USA Today published an editorial by Peter Navarro criticizing Anthony Fauci, which was later disavowed by White House officials. The newspaper also issued an apologetic statement noting that Navarro's criticisms were misleading or lacked context.
August 2020: Mnuchin and Navarro argue over TikTok's fate
In August 2020, Steven Mnuchin and Peter Navarro engaged in a shouting match in the Oval Office about the future of TikTok. Mnuchin favored selling TikTok to a U.S. company, while Navarro advocated for an outright ban of the app.
August 2020: Contract for ventilators negotiated by Navarro terminated
In August 2020, a contract to purchase 42,900 ventilators negotiated by Peter Navarro was terminated due to concerns of overpayment and subject to internal investigation.
October 2020: Preparing Allegations of Election Fraud
In October 2020, two weeks before the presidential elections, Peter Navarro's office in the White House started preparing allegations of election fraud, despite Joe Biden's decisive win.
December 2020: Publishing a Report Alleging Widespread Election Fraud
In December 2020, Peter Navarro published a report alleging widespread election fraud, repeating discredited conspiracy theories and citing biased sources like One America News Network, Newsmax, Steve Bannon's podcast War Room: Pandemic, John Solomon's Just the News, and Raheem Kassam's The National Pulse.
2020: Involvement in COVID-19 response and appointment as national Defense Production Act policy coordinator
During 2020, Peter Navarro was involved in the Trump administration's COVID-19 response. Also in 2020, he was named the national Defense Production Act policy coordinator.
2020: Sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election
In 2020, Peter Navarro sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election, leading to legal challenges.
2020: Criticism of Outsourcing Critical Materials
In 2020, in light of the onset of COVID-19 pandemic, Peter Navarro criticized the outsourcing of critical materials — like the production of essential medical supplies — to China.
January 2, 2021: Participating in a call to overturn election results
On January 2, 2021, Peter Navarro, along with Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, participated in a call with Georgia election officials where Trump urged them to overturn the results of the election. Navarro also falsely asserted on Jeanine Pirro's Fox News program that Joe Biden's inauguration could be postponed.
January 6, 2021: Coordinating "The Green Bay Sweep" and responding to Capitol storming
On January 6, 2021, Peter Navarro and Bannon coordinated "The Green Bay Sweep" with Republican state legislators. After the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, Navarro appeared on Fox Business Network's Making Money on January 8, blaming others and reiterating false claims about the election.
January 2021: Refuses to Return Records to National Archives
After Trump left office in January 2021, Peter Navarro refused requests from the National Archives to return official business-related emails from a personal ProtonMail account, demanding immunity before releasing the emails.
December 2021: Continuing to Claim Falsehoods About Election Fraud
In December 2021, Peter Navarro was still claiming that his falsehoods were meant to lay the legal predicate for actions to be taken, despite no evidence of voting fraud being found.
February 9, 2022: Subpoenaed by House Select Committee
On February 9, 2022, the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack subpoenaed Peter Navarro to provide documents and testimony. He refused to comply, claiming executive privilege, despite lacking supporting evidence.
February 2022: Navarro claims Trump told him not to testify
In February 2022, Peter Navarro claimed Trump had told him in a phone call not to testify to the House committee but failed to produce any evidence of what Trump actually said in the conversation.
February 2022: Subpoenaed by Congress
In February 2022, Peter Navarro was subpoenaed twice by Congress regarding his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
April 6, 2022: House of Representatives Votes to Hold Navarro in Contempt
On April 6, 2022, the House of Representatives voted to hold Peter Navarro in contempt for refusing to testify before the House Select Committee.
May 2022: Subpoenaed by Federal Grand Jury
In May 2022, Peter Navarro announced that he had been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury and ordered to surrender documents related to the January 6, 2021, attack. He unsuccessfully sought to block the subpoenas.
June 2, 2022: Indicted on Contempt of Congress Charges
On June 2, 2022, Peter Navarro was indicted on two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena to produce documents and testimony. He was arrested at Reagan National Airport.
July 15, 2022: Judge Signals Treatment Was "Unreasonably Harsh"
On July 15, 2022, U.S. district judge Amit Mehta signaled that he agreed that the treatment of Peter Navarro at the outset of the criminal case was "unreasonably harsh," noting that the government did not offer self-surrender to Navarro.
August 2022: DOJ Sues Navarro to Produce Emails
In August 2022, the Department of Justice sued Peter Navarro in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking to compel him to produce official business-related emails from a personal ProtonMail account that he used to conduct White House business.
January 2023: Judge Denies Dismissal of Charges
In January 2023, Judge Mehta denied Peter Navarro's effort to dismiss the charges against him for contempt of Congress, citing a lack of evidence to support his claim of executive privilege.
August 2023: Navarro claims Trump told him not to testify
In August 2023, in a pretrial hearing, Peter Navarro claimed that Trump had told him in a February 2022 phone call not to testify to the House committee but failed to produce any evidence of what Trump actually said in the conversation. Following the ruling against him, Navarro tried to grab a "Trump lost" sign from a demonstrator at a press conference.
September 5, 2023: Jury Seated in Contempt Trial
On September 5, 2023, a jury was seated for Peter Navarro's contempt trial. He declined to testify or offer witnesses for the defense and told reporters he expected to face legal bills of $750,000.
September 7, 2023: Convicted on Both Counts of Contempt of Congress
On September 7, 2023, Peter Navarro was convicted on both counts of contempt of Congress.
2023: Convicted on contempt of Congress charges
In 2023, Peter Navarro was convicted on two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena.
January 16, 2024: Request for New Trial Denied
On January 16, 2024, a federal judge denied Peter Navarro's request for a new trial after his conviction on both counts of contempt of Congress.
January 25, 2024: Sentenced to Four Months in Jail
On January 25, 2024, Peter Navarro was sentenced to four months in jail and fined $9,500 for contempt of Congress, becoming the first former White House official imprisoned on such a conviction.
2024: Sentenced to jail for contempt of Congress
In 2024, Peter Navarro was sentenced to four months in jail for contempt of Congress, becoming the first former White House official imprisoned on such a conviction.
April 5, 2025: Elon Musk Criticizes Navarro
On April 5, 2025, Elon Musk criticized Peter Navarro's educational qualifications on X and questioned if he "built shit" in response to the new trade tariffs. Navarro responded by saying Musk is not a "car manufacturer" but a "car assembler".
2025: Prosecutors Demoted
In 2025, interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin demoted Elizabeth Aloi and John Crabb Jr., who worked as prosecutors in Peter Navarro's case, to low-level positions.
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