Leader Schumer Floor Remarks On Donald Trump Taking A Sledgehammer To The Economy And Raising Prices With Reckless Tariffs

Washington, D.C. – Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor on Donald Trump destroying the American economy with his ill-conceived and chaotic tariffs. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Today, Donald Trump takes a sledgehammer to the American economy, and even to the American dream.

With the flick of a pen, Donald Trump is set to unleash the most reckless tsunami of tariffs Americans have seen in over half a century.

Prices will rise on virtually every kind of product: produce, medicines, cars, homes, appliances, metals, paper products, beer, lumber, fertilizer, and more.

But is Donald Trump worried? Not even a little bit. In fact, he said the other day that he “couldn’t care less” if prices go up.

You hear that, America? Life is about to become far more expensive, and Donald Trump – the billionaire who promised to bring down inflation on day one – says he could not care less if you have to pay more.

Maybe tariffs aren’t such a bad deal if you’re rich like Donald Trump and the people running this MAGA government. They're in such a bubble. When you have billionaires and wealthy people running the show, which is what happened in this Trump Administration, they're in a bubble.

They don't understand that tariffs raise the average costs. And when an American family has to pay an extra $5,000, the plans to buy a new car, or maybe put a new room in their house, or go take a vacation or fly to see grandma, are out the window, and life becomes much tougher. But these billionaires living in their bubble don't know, don't care, don't give a hoot.

For average families, Donald Trump’s trade war is a financial gut punch. The average household is going to pay on average $6,000 extra a year.

And why is Donald Trump so dead set on starting this ill-conceived trade war? Simply to pay for his tax breaks for billionaires.

They talk about all the money they will gain, and what are they are using it for? Reducing taxes on the very wealthy.

The money they gain out of the pockets of middle-class working families, who are paying more for almost everything because of the tariffs, goes to pay for tax breaks for billionaires. It's disgraceful.

Now, fortunately, the Senate has a chance to slow this trade war down today, if Republicans join us. Later this afternoon, the Senate will vote on a resolution from Senators Kaine, Klobuchar, and Warner to undo Donald Trump’s emergency declaration with respect to Canada.

I am proud to support this resolution, because we should be lowering costs for American families, not sending them skyrocketing like Donald Trump is doing.

I know Donald Trump is pushing my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to vote it down.

But my Republican colleagues should tune Donald Trump out. They need to stand up to the president when he’s hurting American families so badly. Our Republican colleagues know deep down in their hearts that these tariffs are wrongheaded, harmful, chaotic. I hope they do the right thing.

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