Trump’s tariff war with Canada threatens GOP candidates in border battlegrounds 

President Trump’s tariff war with Canada is putting vulnerable GOP candidates in border states in a precarious position about 10 weeks out from the midterms, with economic anxiety already running high. 

Trump’s 50 percent tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian imports took effect on Saturday after bilateral negotiations collapsed at the eleventh hour. Trump threatened another 50 percent tariffs on cars, trucks, auto parts and steel on Monday to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

Some strategists say the impact on Americans, particularly in states with close economic ties to Canada, will only compound GOP challenges around affordability, with voters losing trust in Republicans to handle the economy. 

“This escalation and the timing of it are problematic,” Jason Cable Roe, a Michigan-based Republican strategist, told The Hill.

“It really undermines our messaging when we’re trying to address affordability and we’re already having to deal with the price of oil due to the war in Iran. But that affordability debate only gets more complicated when we’re in a trade war with our largest trading partner, who happens to share a border with us,” he said.

Roe said the trade war could also be “an opportunity for Republicans to separate themselves from the president’s policy.”

The only GOP candidate to attempt to create that distance so far has been Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who is facing a tough reelection race against Democrat Troy Jackson. She has consistently spoken out against Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods, joining three other Republicans who voted with Democrats last year to undo tariffs on Canada. 

This time around, she called the escalating tariffs a “mistake” and urged officials to get back to the negotiating table.

“The on-again/off-again trade talks between the U.S. and Canada lead to higher costs, risk, and uncertainty for Maine businesses. If the Administration proceeds with these tariffs, they will........

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