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President Donald Trump is set to announce new tariff rates Wednesday against various trading partners, with letters being sent to more than a dozen countries outlining the new rates and deadlines.In a post on social media, the president said tariffs on "a minimum of seven countries" will be unveiled Wednesday morning, with additional countries to be announced in the afternoon. He said during Tuesday's cabinet meeting that the tariff rate could go as high as 70% and emphasized that the new deadline of Aug. 1 will be strictly enforced.“No, Aug. 1 they pay. And everybody pays, everybody has to pay, and the incentive is that they have the right to deal in the United States,” Trump said. “If they don't want to, they don't have to pay and they don't have to deal here.”These tariffs are part of the “Liberation Day” initiative announced in April. The original 90-day pause on those import taxes was set to expire on July 9, but has now been extended through the end of the month. On Monday, the president sent letters to 14 countries, including major trade partners such as Japan and South Korea, outlining the tariff measures. Trump argued that sending letters is a faster and more efficient approach than negotiating individual trade deals.“You can't meet with 200 countries,” Trump said. “We have a few trusted people who know what they're doing that are doing a good job. But you can't do it. You have to do it in a more general way. But it's a very good way. It's a better way. It's a more powerful way.”Economists warn that these tariffs could fuel inflation by increasing costs for imported goods, potentially raising prices for American consumers. Still, President Trump insists the policy will help bring jobs back to the U.S. and boost government revenue.The federal government has collected $98.2 billion in tariff revenues so far this year, more than double what it collected last year, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.Separately, the president announced on Tuesday that he would sign an order imposing a 50% tariff on copper, which is widely used in electronics, construction, and automobiles. He also suggested that pharmaceutical drugs could face tariffs of up to 200% in the future. These actions expand on existing tariffs on steel, aluminum, autos, and more, forming a central part of President Trump’s second-term trade agenda.Keep watching below for the latest from the Washington News Bureau.