Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross was cut off in the midst of his remarks to a Berlin economic conference hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party ahead of the G20 conference the country is hosting next week.
The video feed showing Ross’ remarks on Tuesday evening was killed after Ross doubly exceeded the 10 minutes he had been scheduled for, prompting applause and laughter from conference attendees, according to Bloomberg News.
But the move caught the White House’s attention, leading some White House officials to complain Thursday morning about what they interpreted as a show of disrespect, a White House official told CNN. The official acknowledged that Ross went over his time.
A Ross spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
Ross’ remarks come a week before President Donald Trump arrives in Germany for the G20 summit of the world’s 20 most powerful world leaders. The President is likely to again be confronted on his protectionist trade views and his plans to withdraw from the Paris climate accords.
Ross used his remarks to the German conference to echo Trump’s outspoken criticism of Germany’s trade surplus with the US, which has become a key point of contention between the two countries during the Trump administration.
Werner Bahlsen, the head of the Christian Democratic Union’s economic council, noted after Ross’ feed was cut off that Ross had promised a 10-minute statement.
“As you saw, he spoke a bit slowly, so it took a bit longer. Now we look forward to the chancellor’s speech,” Bahlsen said, according to Bloomberg News.
Germany is a key US trading partner and ally in Europe, but relations have grown more tense since Trump came into office.
Trump frequently criticized Merkel on the campaign trail and the relationship between the two has been icy at times over the last six months.