'On brand': GOPer ripped for saying he supports Trump tariffs even if they hurt his constituents
Rep. Tony Gonzales on CNN on July 13, 2025. (screengrab/ CNN)
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R‑TX) said Sunday he supports President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a sweeping 30% tariff on all imports from Mexico — the top trading partner for Gonzales’s home state of Texas — even if the move hurts his constituents.
CNN host Dana Bash asked Gonzales during her show: “President Trump says he's putting a 30% tariff on all goods from Mexico, your state's biggest trading partner. Will they hurt your constituents, the tariffs?”
“It may, but I do support the president in this," he replied.
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The Texas Republican said Mexico has been allowed to do whatever they want. "I am very focused on the August 1st date," he said, referencing Trump's deadline.
He continued: "What that means is that President Trump has given us a couple weeks to try to come up with a solution. And I have seen Mexico change. From months ago being allowed to do whatever they want, to now all of a sudden they are coming to the table," he said.
"If the tariffs come into play, it hurts everyone," Gonzales added.
The lawmaker's statement sparked backlash on social media.
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Political commentator Fred Wellman, reacting to a clip of Gonzales saying he supports the tariffs, wrote on the social platform X: "Of course he does. It doesn’t matter if average people suffer as long as daddy is happy. These cowards will throw their constituents under a bus to keep Trump from saying mean things about them."
"Republicans are a case study in how a political party can get people to vote against their own self interests year after year, decade after decade," wrote a user on X.
"'It may hurt them but it's a risk I'M willing to take' is so on brand for Republicans. It really is," said another user.
"They know it's going to cost us money. They just don't care," a user wrote.
