(The Center Square) – Despite presidential authority, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., called on Republicans on Wednesday to block the Trump administration’s tariffs and return to free trade.
Murray issued the call to action alongside British Columbia Premier David Eby as they criticized President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada and its impact on her home state. Eby said border crossings to Washington have dropped 35% as Trump and his cabinet pursue a new trade deal.
While Trump initially imposed the tariffs to pressure Canada into combating fentanyl trafficking, he also uses them as a tool to achieve what he sees as fair trade. Trump struck a free trade deal with Canada and Mexico in 2018, but may try to renegotiate that agreement to protect and advance American interests.
Another round of U.S. tariffs is set to take effect on Aug. 1, affecting Canada and other trade partners. Trump has already imposed a 25% tariff on certain vehicles and Canadian goods, but that could increase to 35%. If Canada retaliates, Trump says he may impose another 35% on top of whatever they do.
“President Trump doesn’t seem to know the first thing about running a business, and then again, maybe that explains his six bankruptcies,” Murray said on Wednesday. “But besides that, every time he opens his mouth, he is demonstrating that he doesn’t understand how tariffs work.”
The U.S. Department of the Treasury recently reported a federal budget surplus in June for the first time in years. The $27 billion surplus was primarily driven by tariffs, raising hope among the president’s supporters that the policies could help tackle the national debt amid increased spending.
According to FactCheck.org, the Biden administration also recorded a few surpluses. June only marked the first surplus in that given month since 2016. There was another surplus in April, though nonpartisan estimates do suggest that tariffs could reduce primary deficits by $2.5 trillion over the next decade.
Goods trade with Canada amounted to $762.1 billion last year, with imports to Washington state accounting for nearly $18 billion. Murray said that another $8 billion accounted for imports from her state to Canada, and $2 billion came from cross-border tourism and associated spending.
However, the U.S. still recorded a $63.3 billion trade deficit with Canada last year. RSM Chief Economist Joe Brusuelas says the deficit is mainly due to U.S. oil imports. Without oil, he says the U.S. has a trade surplus. Still, Trump argues his tariffs are in the interest of national security.
“I disagree with [Trump] on that,” U.S. Rep. Michael Baumgartner, a Republican from Spokane, told voters in March. “He likes it as a negotiating tool. In general, I’ll continue to work within the administration and with stakeholders on the tariff issue because all our wheat has to go to market.”
U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, the state’s only other congressional Republican, also opposes the tariffs, though, outside of that, he and Baumgartner generally align with the Trump administration.
Newhouse recently wrote an op-ed with Edmund O. Schweitzer, III, founder of Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, calling on Congress to regain control over trade, much like Murray has. Schweitzer joined Eby and Murray for their Wednesday press conference, claiming tariffs could cost SEL $100 million.
He called the costs “unanticipated federal taxes,” adding that, split among the 7,000 people who make up the worker-owned company, the $100 million comes out to around $14,000 per person.
According to CBC, Prime Minister Mark Carney said that it’s unlikely that Canada will agree to a trade deal with the U.S. without some level of tariffs. Trump has just secured a deal with Japan, but it also included tariffs, as did another agreement he made this week with the Philippines.
“President Trump seems to have created the 51st state that he was talking about,” Schweitzer said. “The great state of uncertainty.”
