Shaheen Statement on Sweeping Trump Tariff Taxes Taking Effect

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a senior member of the U.S. Senate Small Business Committee, released the following statement on President Trump’s sweeping tariffs taking effect for more than 90 countries just after midnight:

“Let’s be very clear: This misguided move will raise prices on everyday goods like food, clothing and housing, at a time when families are already struggling with high costs. President Trump’s tariffs will squeeze small businesses and force many to close their doors, harm our standing in global markets and result in job loss across this country. In fact, since President Trump first announced these tariffs, manufacturers have already shed tens of thousands of jobs – the exact jobs the President said the tariffs would support.

“Economic data last week showed slowing job growth and higher prices – and now, with America imposing the highest tariffs since the Great Depression, matters will only get worse. Our families, consumers and small businesses deserve certainty to plan for the future and keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets. Instead, President Trump is strapping them with an even higher cost of living after campaigning on the exact opposite.”

Senator Shaheen is helping lead efforts in Congress to mitigate the harmful impacts of President Trump's tariffs. Last week, Shaheen took to the Senate floor to call for unanimous consent to pass her Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes on Imported Goods Act and highlight the devastating impacts the trade war has on families, small businesses, American manufacturing and key trade partnerships across the world, but Senate Republicans blocked the move. Last month, Shaheen helped introduce bipartisan legislation, Creating Access to Necessary American-Canadian Duty Adjustments (CANADA) Act, that would exempt United States-owned small businesses from the sweeping tariffs imposed on Canadian products. Last month, Shaheen led 30 Senators in filing an amicus brief in a key case, Oregon v. Department of Homeland Security, challenging the Trump Administration’s abuse of emergency powers to impose tariffs.

In recent months, Shaheen has traveled across the Granite State to discuss the impact of tariffs on New Hampshire’s tourism industry and to visit businesses impacted by President Trump’s trade war including Brueckner Group USA, Colby Footwear, Chatila’s Bakery, C&J, DCI Furniture, Mount Cabot Maple, American Calan Inc. and NH Ball Bearings.

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