The Trump administration rolled out tariffs on more than 80 countries this week, a move that unified an unlikely coalition of critics. Democrats pounced on what they called economic recklessness, while even some Republicans within Trump's orbit expressed private doubts about the strategy.
Trade Representative Jamieson Greer framed the tariffs as a crackdown on forced labor, claiming the targeted nations had failed to enforce prohibitions on goods made through labor exploitation. The new duties, ranging from 10% to 12.5%, replaced a global 10% tariff set to expire.
Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, a California Democrat, dismissed the forced labor rationale as a smokescreen. She pointed out that the administration applies identical tariff rates to China, a major forced labor violator, and Australia, despite the fact that Australia does not manufacture Trump-branded products while China does. She also criticized the administration for cutting funding to combat forced labor and rolling back worker protections.
"President Trump isn't serious about combating forced labor," Sanchez wrote on social media. "He's trying to make an end-run around the Supreme Court and Congress to reimpose his illegal tariffs."
Representative Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania used sharper language. "Trump is hell-bent on raising your prices," he said in a statement. "His new tariffs are a nationwide sales tax that will only serve to make life harder for Americans just trying to make ends meet."
White House insiders voiced their own reservations in conversations with Politico. One person close to the administration acknowledged that tariff announcements trigger immediate negative market reactions. "When you announce new tariffs, it's not like, okay, well, let's see what they do. It's, 'Oh crap, those are the bad things,'" the source said.
Another White House figure predicted that Republican lawmakers would balk at the price tag. "I think Republicans are comfortable with the threat, even though that has some market impacts. But actual revenue coming away from people's pocketbooks is not what Republicans are happy with," the source explained.
Senator John Cornyn of Texas, a Republican departing the Senate at year's end, broke ranks more publicly. "There's no question that tariffs on imports raise prices on American products," Cornyn told The Hill. "So yeah, I'm concerned about that."
Not all Republicans objected. Representative Jason Smith of Missouri, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, praised the move. "True to its word, the Trump administration is fighting for American families, farmers and small businesses when it comes to our trading relationships," Smith said, calling the tariffs appropriate for addressing unfair trade practices.
Brazil issued a sharp rebuke, calling the 12.5% tariff on its goods "completely arbitrary and unjustified" and denying that it had failed to enforce forced labor restrictions.
Public sentiment on tariffs has shifted against Trump's approach. A Harris Poll survey found that 70% of Americans reported paying more due to tariffs, and a majority of voters including 60% of Republicans said tariffs have harmed consumers.
Author James Rodriguez: "Trump's tariff strategy is creating an uncomfortable reality for his party: voters are noticing their grocery bills and gas prices, and Wall Street is spooked by policy whiplash."
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