By Andrew Restuccia and Bob Davis

WASHINGTON -- President Trump's top economic adviser criticized his boss's handling of the riot at the U.S. Capitol and said he was disappointed in the way Mr. Trump treated Vice President Mike Pence, while defending the administration's policy legacy.

"I was hoping that he would come out quickly and make statements calling everybody back and stopping the violence," White House National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said during an 80-minute interview with The Wall Street Journal. He praised the video the president made earlier this week condemning violence, adding that he wished he had released it earlier.

Mr. Trump, in a speech to thousands of protesters gathered near the Washington Monument on Jan. 6, falsely asserted he had won the election and urged his supporters to march to the Capitol, where lawmakers were certifying President-elect Joe Biden's electoral victory. As the protesters began breaching security lines, Mr. Trump criticized Mr. Pence on Twitter for not blocking the certification. After hundreds had broken into the Capitol, Mr. Trump called on the rioters to remain peaceful and avoid violence.

But later that day, the president tweeted, "These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long."

Mr. Kudlow joined the ranks of administration officials who have publicly criticized the president's actions in relation to the riot. Three cabinet secretaries and several senior officials across the administration have stepped down in the aftermath of the attack

The NEC director weighed the possibility of resigning in the aftermath of the riot, but ultimately decided against it. After speaking to other senior White House officials, Mr. Kudlow said, "we decided we needed to do the work of the country in the last 10 days or so."

Still, he took issue with the president's rhetoric. He said the president shouldn't have continued to argue that he had won the election, arguing it was a mistake not to shift focus to policy matters.

"Once the electoral college declared Mr. Biden to be president-elect, we would have been better advised to acknowledge that and to pivot toward talking about our positive achievements and the policies that generated those policy achievements," Mr. Kudlow said.

But Mr. Kudlow nonetheless made the case that Mr. Trump's speech before the riot didn't incite the violence and didn't amount to an impeachable offense.

Asked if he was frustrated by Mr. Trump's public criticism of Mr. Pence, Mr. Kudlow said, "I was very disappointed in the president."

The president's assertion that Mr. Pence could prevent Mr. Biden from taking office had little legal basis.

"The vice president's legal experts were very clear in providing Mike with the knowledge that he had a very, very limited role in the congressional certification of the electors, and virtually, except for a few extremists, the entire legal profession agreed with Pence," Mr. Kudlow said.

Mr. Kudlow also touted Mr. Trump's policy legacy, citing tax cuts, deregulation and trade deals as major victories.

"I think President Trump will go down in history as the president who changed our policies and woke up to the fact that China was becoming more of a competitor and moving into the area of an enemy," he said.

He urged the incoming Biden administration to continue the hard-line approach, including negotiating a free-trade deal with Taiwan, which China regards as a renegade province. That didn't make sense when the U.S. was pressing Beijing to sign a trade deal, which he said "was a higher priority."

With the Phase One agreement with China out of the way, a Taiwan deal could signal U.S. support for the island against mounting pressure from Beijing. "It's essential the U.S. protect Taiwan and make it clear to China we intend to protect Taiwan," he said. "I think the world community will rally around us."

Mr. Kudlow also urged Mr. Biden to continue tariffs on $370 billion of Chinese imports -- three-quarters of everything China sells to the U.S. -- "at least until the U.S. government is satisfied with China's implementation" of the trade pact, which requires China to beef up protection of intellectual property and buy an additional $200 billion in U.S. goods over two years. China is well behind in its purchases.

Biden advisers have said that the incoming president doesn't plan to lift tariffs quickly and wants to consult with allies before making a decision on the levies.

Mr. Kudlow described his time in the White House as the "job of a lifetime," adding that he had a positive relationship with the president and that Mr. Trump often listened to his advice. Mr. Kudlow met with Mr. Trump for about 20 minutes this week.

On at least two occasions, Mr. Kudlow said he urged the president to take steps to underscore the seriousness of the pandemic, including by stressing the importance of wearing masks. Mr. Trump largely rebuffed that advice, which Mr. Kudlow said might have contributed to the president's defeat.

"I don't think it helped the election and I don't think it helped solve Covid," Mr. Kudlow said. "I was not the only one who gave him that advice, by the way, on the economic team."

Mr. Kudlow, however, praised the administration's efforts to negotiate coronavirus-relief legislation and stood by his opposition to widespread economic shutdowns in light of the pandemic.

As Mr. Biden's inauguration approaches, Mr. Kudlow said he has had informal conversations with some of the incoming president's economic advisers, many of whom he has known for years. But he hasn't offered them any advice. He hasn't spoken to his successor, Brian Deese.

Mr. Kudlow said he plans to return to work in television and radio: "I've got a lot of energy for a 73-year-old."

--Alex Leary contributed to this article.

Write to Andrew Restuccia at Andrew.Restuccia@wsj.com and Bob Davis at bob.davis@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-15-21 1753ET