‘‘We are not seeing indications of the boom that the president promised," Boushey said. ‘’It’s a failed strategy.‘’
Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., said the tariffs are ‘’part of the chaos and dysfunction’’ being generated across the Trump administration. The chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee stressed that Trump should not have the sole authority to raise taxes as he intends without getting lawmakers’ approval, saying that Republicans so far have been ‘’blindly loyal.‘’
‘‘The president shouldn’t be able to do that," DelBene said. “This is a massive tax increase on American families, and it’s without a vote in Congress ... President Trump promised on the campaign trail that he would lower costs on day one. Now he says he doesn’t care if prices go up — he’s broken his promise.‘’
Even Republicans who trust Trump’s instincts have acknowledged that the tariffs could disrupt an economy with an otherwise healthy 4.1 % unemployment rate.
‘‘We’ll see how it all develops,‘’ said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. ‘’It may be rocky in the beginning. But I think that this will make sense for Americans and help all Americans.‘’
Longtime trading partners are preparing their own countermeasures. Canada has imposed some in response to the 25% tariffs that Trump tied to the trafficking of fentanyl. The European Union, in response to the steel and aluminum tariffs, put taxes on 26 billion euros’ worth ($28 billion) of U.S. goods, including on bourbon, which prompted Trump to threaten a 200% tariff on European alcohol.