Republicans will be the ones who pay for Trump’s tariffs in the midterms

With midterms rapidly approaching, Republicans had appeared to catch a break on the economy.  

After a year in which the war with Iran sent gas prices soaring and pushed inflation to multi-year highs, both June and July’s Consumer Price Index came in tame. Even grocery prices slipped for the first time in months. 

Then President Trump returned to his longtime obsession: tariffs. 

Indeed, last weekend, talks between the White House and Canada collapsed, and Trump immediately slapped 50 percent tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of Canadian goods, reviving what the Wall Street Journal called “The Dumbest Trade War in History.” 

The timing could hardly be worse for Republicans, who had spent months straining to soothe voters’ concerns over the cost of living and attempting to build a midterm message around affordability. Now, tariffs and trade chaos are back in the news, and Republicans are likely going to pay the price. 

As the Wall Street Journal noted, “Republicans are already getting pounded on the campaign trail over [Trump’s] tariffs and inflation.” The data confirms that.  

A majority of Americans, 56 percent, ranked cost of living concerns among the top issues facing the country, per Politico polling. Even among Trump voters, a plurality of 33 percent cites rising prices as “among the biggest failures of Trump’s second term.” 

To be sure, voters have long disliked tariffs. March’s Harris Poll revealed that 72 percent of Americans — including 60 percent of Republicans — believe Trump’s tariffs have a negative impact. 

Opinions have not changed, and evidence of the political implications is emerging. A 54 percent majority of likely voters in........

© The Hill