Free Trade

Republicans Are Getting Grilled Over Trump's Tariffs

From Maine to Michigan, voters are fed up with tariffs and trade wars.

Eric Boehm | 10.8.2026 12:30 PM

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(Mike Rogers/X/Bonnie Cash - Pool via CNP/picture alliance / Consolidated News Photos/Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Newscom)

With the midterm elections now less than a month away, Republicans are finding it more difficult to hide from the obvious consequences of the Trump administration's trade policies—and some are publicly challenging the tariffs.

That's especially true in states along America's northern border, where trade with Canada has long been a key part of the local economy. President Donald Trump's trade war with Canada—which includes a 50 percent tariff on a wide range of Canadian goods, as well as an outright import ban on Canadian alcohol and dairy products—is putting GOP candidates in the awkward position of trying to highlight their limited attempts at curbing the administration's tariff-hiking policies.

Take Sen. Susan Collins (R–Maine). During a televised debate on Tuesday, Collins clashed with her Democratic opponent—logger and former state lawmaker Troy Jackson—over the tariffs. Collins pointed out that she successfully pushed the administration to exempt road salt and cement from its tariffs on Canadian imports.

Jackson pounced. "What about everything else?" he asked. "I mean, we can't eat road salt."

Collins: I was successful at getting road salt removed from the tariff list.

Jackson: What about everything else? We can't eat road salt. With everything she's doing with the Iran war, there will be so many less people that can afford to drive that I'm not even sure the road… pic.twitter.com/67ZBrn0CV3

— Acyn (@Acyn) October 7, 2026

It's the sort of moment that campaign consultants dream about—or that gives them nightmares. A one-liner that pinned Collins to the rising prices caused by Trump's........

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