***AUDIO HERE; PHOTOS and B-ROLL HERE***
Seattle, WA— Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, met with small business owners in Seattle’s University District to hear how Trump’s chaotic trade war is impacting them. Trump is currently taxing goods from every country—including close allies like Canada—at a minimum 10 percent tariff rate across-the-board. He has also significantly escalated his trade war with China, with 145 percent tariffs on Chinese goods—meaning higher prices and serious pain for families and small businesses across Washington state and the country. Even with his 90-day “pause” on reciprocal tariffs, Trump’s new tariffs are still the highest tariff rates in decades, and are estimated to cost American families more than $4,000 each year—the largest tax increase since 1968.
During the visit, Senator Murray heard from small business owners about how the Trump administration’s reckless trade war is leading to serious uncertainty for businesses and consumers in Seattle. Businesses are worried that tariffs will push them to raise prices—potentially driving customers away—and lay off workers to cut costs. Participating in the discussion with Senator Murray, held at Café Allegro, were: Yasuaki Saito, Owner of Saint Bread; Miles Richardson, General Manager of University Volkswagen/Audi Seattle; Trevor Peterson, CEO of the University Book Store; Efrem Fesaha, CEO of Boon Boona coffee; Jennifer Antos, Executive Director of Seattle Neighborhood Farmers’ Markets; Chris Peterson, Owner of Cafe Allegro since 1985; Lois Ko, Owner of Sweet Alchemy ice cream shops in the U District, Ballard, and Capitol Hill, and Anson Lin, Owner of Astora Construction.
“These small businesses are at the heart of the U District community, and it was important to hear from them about how Trump’s tariffs and his pointless trade war are affecting their bottom lines—it’s something I’m hearing about everywhere I go across Washington state,” said Senator Murray. “Trump’s ham-fisted trade war is threatening livelihoods here in Washington state—small businesses are worrying about whether they can keep their doors open without laying people off, families that are already scrambling to pay the bills are worried about rising costs at the grocery store, and our farmers are deeply concerned about retaliatory tariffs from other nations in response to Trump’s tariffs. Trump’s tariffs are an enormous new tax on hardworking Americans and businesses. I will continue to share the stories and raise the voices of the people in Washington state who are being affected by Trump’s thoughtless trade war. There is no good reason for us to be picking fights with our trading partners and close allies like Canada—it’s time for Republicans in Congress to stand up and vote with us to end this chaos.”
Washington state has one of the most trade-dependent economies of any state in the country, with 40 percent of jobs tied to international commerce. Washington state is the top U.S. producer of apples, blueberries, hops, pears, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries—all of which risk losing vital export markets due to retaliatory tariffs from key trading partners including Canada. Additionally, more than 12,000 small and medium-sized companies in Washington state export goods and will struggle to absorb the impact of retaliatory tariffs. Canada is Washington’s largest trading partner, accounting for nearly $20 billion in imports and $10 billion in exports. China is the world’s second-largest economy and Washington state exported over $12 billion in goods to China last year—making China Washington state’s top export partner—and imported $11.2 billion in goods, the most in imports from any country aside from Canada. Trump’s tariffs during his first term were extremely costly for Washington state—for example, India imposed a 20 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. apples, causing Washington apple shipments to India to fall by 99 percent and growers to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in exports.
Senator Murray has been a vocal opponent of Trump’s chaotic trade war and has been lifting up the voices of people in Washington state harmed by this administration’s approach to trade and calling on Republicans to end Trump’s trade war—which Congress has the power to do—and take back Congress’ Constitutionally-granted power to impose tariffs. Earlier this month, Senator Murray brought together leaders across Washington state who highlighted how Trump’s ongoing trade war is already a devastating hit to Washington state’s economy, businesses, and our agriculture sector. Senator Murray also took to the Senate floor to lay out how Trump’s chaotic trade war is seriously threatening our economy, American businesses, families’ retirement savings, and so much else. Last week, Senator Murray joined her colleagues in pressing U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer on how the Trump administration’s tariffs are affecting farmers across the country. Last week, Senator Murray also held a roundtable discussion in Tacoma with local businesses and ports, toured local businesses in downtown Vancouver, and held a roundtable discussion in Vancouver with local businesses and ports, to highlight how Trump’s chaotic trade war and senseless tariffs are harming the overall economy in Washington state.
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