Shaheen: Extreme Trump Tariffs on All Imported Goods Amount to a National Sales Tax That Will Punish Granite State Families and Small Businesses

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) released the following statement in response to President Trump imposing 10 percent tariffs on all imported goods, with far higher taxes on many more countries:  

“President Trump’s extreme, sweeping tariffs amount to a national sales tax—which may be the largest tax increase during peacetime in U.S. history—that will indeed punish Granite State families, consumers and small businesses the most. Instead of focusing on how to lower costs for families who are struggling to make ends meet, the President is insistent on starting an unnecessary trade war.  

“Make no mistake: hardworking Americans—not foreign nations—will be forced to pick up the tab. And in the President’s own words, he ‘couldn’t care less’ if prices go up. 

“If the impact here at home wasn’t enough, the President’s reckless tariffs will harm our global standing – weakening our national security and fueling China’s growth. To punish families with higher prices while driving our trading partners towards one of our top adversaries is simply putting America Last. 

“Families will foot the bill so that the administration can pay for tax cuts for billionaires. The President must immediately reverse course before he isolates America further and runs our economy into the ground.” 

Economists and business leaders alike have said broad tariffs could stoke further inflation, worsen the risk of a recession and raise prices on consumers. 

In recent weeks, Senator Shaheen has traveled across the Granite State to hear from multiple small business owners—including C&J, DCI Furniture, Mount Cabot Maple and American Calan Inc.—about how President Trump’s threat of sweeping tariffs has already harmed their ability to maintain current operations, let alone grow and compete. 

Last month, Shaheen invited Rebecca Hamilton, the co-owner and co-CEO of Badger in Gilsum, New Hampshire, to be her guest for President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress. Badger is one of many New Hampshire small businesses that will be badly hit by today’s tariffs. A day prior, Shaheen took to the Senate floor to call for unanimous consent to pass her legislation—the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes on Imported Goods Act. If Republicans had not blocked passage, Shaheen’s bill would have shielded American consumers and businesses from rising prices and higher taxes caused by President Trump’s tariffs on Canada and Mexico. 

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