Trump on 'an ego trip' following announcement of tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China: top Dem

Olivia Rosane
and
Common Dreams
01 February
History provides lessons on how Canada can deal with Donald Trump

U.S. President Donald Trump signed three executive orders on Saturday following through on his promise to impose 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada and 10% tariffs on goods from China, a measure that targets the nation's three largest trading partners.

The tariffs are set to go into effect on Tuesday, according toThe Associated Press. The orders contained no language allowing for the negotiation of exceptions; however, Canadian energy products including oil and gas will only face a tariff of 10%.

"Tariffs are an important strategic economic tool, but Trump's desire for a trade war with Canada and Mexico won't protect jobs, keep Americans safe, or bring down costs for families," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said on social media in response to the news.

"Instead of using tariffs to protect U.S. jobs, Trump is on an ego trip and is using tariffs to pursue petty fights with other nations while raising prices on Americans."

A White House Fact Sheet announcing the tariffs said that the crossing of undocumented immigrants and illegal drugs—including fentanyl—over the Mexican and Canadian borders "constitutes a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act."

"President Trump is taking bold action to hold Mexico, Canada, and China accountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other illegal drugs from flowing into our country," the fact sheet said.

However, it is unclear exactly what actions the targeted countries could take to lift the tariffs.

U.S. voters' frustration with inflation has been cited as an important reason why Trump won the 2024 presidential election. Yet broad tariffs are expected to raise the prices of a variety of goods including Mexican produce, Canadian lumber, and car-making supplies that often cross both borders several times in the construction of a vehicle, according toNBC News. Companies that import goods or supplies will have to decide whether to swallow the costs or pass them on to consumers.

"Small business owners like me are working hard to keep up with high costs, provide for our families, and keep the economy running," Alex Bronson, who owns a construction business in Mount Clemens, Michigan, said in a statement shared by Unrig Our Economy. "But after promising to lower our costs, Republicans seem set to deliver the opposite. Because of these tariffs, we'll be paying higher costs for construction among just about everything else just to help Republicans in Congress and Donald Trump gift bigger and bigger tax breaks to their billionaire friends and big corporations. It leaves us all wondering: Who are our leaders in Washington really working for?"

Warren also warned that the tariffs could give unscrupulous actors the chance to engage in greedflation.

"I'm concerned that Trump will give cover to giant corporations to use his tariffs as an excuse to raise prices on working families—while doling out waivers to his buddies," she wrote. "We will hold him accountable."

Other Democratic lawmakers also spoke out against the tariffs and the way they were imposed.

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) pointed to a new study finding the tariffs would cut into disposable income by approximately $1,250 per household.

"Trump's tariffs are a clear overreach of executive power, misusing authorities never intended for this," Beyer wrote. "The Constitution delegates trade authority to Congress. Trump's abuses of trade powers make it clear that Congress must act to restore the constitutional balance of power."

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said, "Instead of developing a comprehensive worker-centered trade policy that will bring jobs back to the U.S., President Trump is using the threat of across-the-board tariffs not on behalf of American workers and consumers but to advance his own extremist policy agenda."

The Peterson Institute for International Economics found in a recent analysis that tariffs would harm the economies of the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and China, but would be "catastrophic" for Mexico and could ironically increase the number of people who would want to cross the border into the U.S.

"Instead of using tariffs to protect U.S. jobs, Trump is on an ego trip and is using tariffs to pursue petty fights with other nations while raising prices on Americans," Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) said in a statement.

"Everything Trump has done these last few days—from trying to shut down Medicaid to blanket tariffs and sanctions—has all been about helping himself and his billionaire friends. House Republicans will own increased prices for Americans, increased migration driven by sanctions, and an overdose crisis made worse by taking away the addiction treatment and healthcare people need," he said.

Labor and public welfare groups also criticized the tariffs.

"It's 'tariff-ying' and nauseating to watch President Trump and his Republican allies in Congress celebrate as they impose tariffs that will raise costs for the rest of us," Unrig Our Economy spokesperson Kobie Christian said. "Every time Americans pay more when they buy clothes, electronics, or shop at the grocery store, they should remember they're paying for the cost of tax breaks that Republicans in Congress and Donald Trump plan to give to billionaires and corporations. It turns out 'America First' means America's BillionairesFirst."

President of the United Steelworkers (USU) David McCall said in a statement, "The USW has long called for systemic reform of our broken trade system, but lashing out at key allies like Canada is not the way forward," adding, "These tariffs don't just hurt Canada. They threaten the stability of industries on both sides of the border."

Mexico and Canada have both threatened to retaliate in the case of Trump-imposed tariffs. The executive orders signed by Trump included a provision to respond in the case of retaliation. However, if the countries do retaliate, this could also impact U.S. businesses that sell products in the two countries, such as vehicles; electronics; and agricultural, energy, and industrial products, as NBC explained.

"No one—on either side of the border—wants to see American tariffs on Canadian goods," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote on social media on Friday. "I met with our Canada-U.S. Council today. We're working hard to prevent these tariffs, but if the United States moves ahead, Canada's ready with a forceful and immediate response."

On Saturday, Trudeau added that he had met with his cabinet and the premiers of Canadian provinces once the tariffs were announced and would speak with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and address the nation later in the day.

Speaking on Friday from Mexico's National Palace, Sheinbaum said her government had a "plan A, a plan B, a plan C, for whatever the United States government decides."

Once the tariffs were announced on Saturday, she wrote on social media: "I instruct the secretary of economy to implement Plan B that we have been working on, which includes tariff and non-tariff measures in defense of Mexico's interests. Nothing by force; everything by reason and right."

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