- Michigan lawmakers express concerns over new tariffs impacting local industries.
- Legislators emphasize the importance of manufacturing in the state's economy.
- GOP lawmakers say these tariffs will help cut down on illegal immigration and drugs into the U.S
For your convenience, the skimmable summary above is generated with the assistance of AI and fact-checked by our team prior to publication. Read the full story as originally reported below.
President Donald Trump declared Saturday he will put tariffs on goods coming from Canada, Mexico and China.
For Canada and Mexico, the tariffs are now on pause for a month.
Democratic State Representatives discussed how tariffs could impact Michigan, including our neighborhoods.
"We are Canada's second largest trade partner behind Illinois. And we are Mexico's second-largest trade partner behind Texas," State Representative Julie Brixie said.
Canada would have 25% tariffs on their goods and China will have 10% additional tariffs.
As your state capitol reporter, I covered the impacts tariffs could have on manufacturing in our neighborhoods before they were set.
"Corporations will raise prices to pass along the costs of the tariffs to customers," State Representative Kara Hope said.
According to Canada's Government, nearly 51 billion dollars worth of Canadian goods come to Michigan each year, and more than half of those goods are cars, trucks, and auto parts.
From the roads to the kitchen table, the impacts are everywhere.
"We get most of our pork from Canada, we trade grains," Brixie said.
Also gas, electronics, and fertilizer.
And they say the bill for your groceries at the store could get higher too.
"It might take longer for things that are less perishable and more stable but for groceries, for sure we'll see the prices go up right away," Hope said.
But Republican State Senator Jim Runestad says these could bring positive impacts to our neighborhoods.
"He is just adhering to his promises to the people that he was going to get serious and start doing something about stopping fentanyl from pouring in and killing 100-thousand Americans a year," State Senator Jim Runestad said.
President Trump said the reason for these tariffs was to put pressure on these countries to stop the drug fentanyl and undocumented immigrants from coming to the United States.
"I believe Trump will get what we need here in the United States and stop the cooperation from the cartels, child traffickers, drug cartels and finally put an end to this stuff," Runestad said.
But the Democrats I talked with say otherwise.
"If this is the master plan to prevent drugs from coming into the country, there are other ways to pay for it," Runestad said.
President Trump is continuing conversations surrounding tariffs with leaders from all three countries. We will be keeping you updated on the latest information.
Want to see more local news? Visit the FOX47News Website.
For more news about the State Capitol, go to the State Capitol neighborhood page on our website.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox.
Select from these options: Neighborhood News, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines, and Daily Forecasts.
