President Trump’s schedule (EDT):

11:00 AM:  Participates in a conversation at the Business Roundtable quarterly meeting; and

  3:15 PM:  Signs an executive order on improving free inquiry, transparency, and accountability on campus.  

                  More in last night’s Wall Street Journal article.

This morning’s Politico Playbook: 

SCOOP … TRACKING TRADE, THE PRESIDENT’S TOP PRIORITY … THE WHITE HOUSE has invited House Republicans on the USMCA — new NAFTA — whip team to meet with PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP next week. The invitations went out Wednesday to a few offices on Capitol Hill. The meeting will be Tuesday at 3:15 p.m., and it is restricted to members of Congress.

TRUMP’S personal involvement here is a new dynamic, and it’s notable. Some people in the White House pushed back on us last week when we asked when the president would get involved. He’s now getting involved, speaking to a small group of Republican members about his top legislative priority.

“Trump Says Tariffs on Chinese Goods Will Stay for ‘Substantial Period of Time.’”  This morning’s Wall Street Journal article leads with:

WASHINGTON—With the U.S. and China preparing for a fresh round of face-to-face negotiations, President Trump said the U.S. expected to keep tariffs on Chinese goods in place for a “substantial period of time,” even after a deal.

“We have to make sure that if we do the deal with China that China lives by the deal,“ Mr. Trump told reporters as he left Washington for Ohio. Administration officials have talked of removing tariffs in stages, as Beijing shows that it has carried out parts of a deal—and reimposing them if China later backtracks.

The details of a tariff rollback are the subject of ongoing negotiations, as are questions about enforcement, technology transfer, cross-border data flows and other issues.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are planning to fly to Beijing for talks next week with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He. The two sides hope to wrap up a deal by the end of April.

Mr. Trump said “top representatives” are flying to Beijing for negotiations. On Thursday, China’s Ministry of Commerce said Messrs. Lighthizer and Mnuchin would visit Beijing on March 28 and 29 to continue trade talks. The ministry also said Mr. Liu would visit Washington early next month.

The President didn’t explain whether the U.S. is pressing to keep in place tariffs on all the $250 billion of Chinese goods the U.S. has hit with levies, or some portion of them, nor did he indicate for how long.