Mnuchin suggests U.S. tech war is bigger than China

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tweeted that reports from Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal that the Trump administration plans to block Chinese investment in U.S. tech are "fake news," saying the restrictions will apply to other countries, too.

Why it matters: It's a disingenuous slam of the media given everything the White House has said so far about its trade moves. The Trump administration has cited China — and only China — in official statements about intellectual property theft.

From a May 29 White House statement:

"The United States will implement specific investment restrictions and enhanced export controls for Chinese persons and entities related to the acquisition of industrially significant technology. The list of restrictions and controls will be announced by June 30, 2018."

Between the lines: "Beyond the particulars of this situation, there's an internal policy fight between Mnuchin — who wants a more moderate solution — and Navarro, who wants to aggressively strike China on multiple fronts," Axios' Jonathan Swan emails.

Go deeper: Peter Navarro's radical transformation from globalist to protectionist.