ICYMI: Senator Murray, Commerce Director Nguyễn, WA Businesses and Agriculture Respond to Trump Tariffs Raising Costs on Americans, Tanking Economy
ICYMI: In Senate Floor Speech, Senator Murray Hammers Trump and Republicans on Chaotic, Painful Trade War and Steep Tariffs Raising Costs on Families and Small Businesses in WA
***AUDIO HERE; PHOTOS and B-ROLL HERE***
Tacoma, WA— Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion in Tacoma highlighting how local businesses, the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma, and the overall economy in Washington state is suffering from President Trump’s senseless and chaotic trade war.
On April 2nd, President Trump announced sweeping new tariffs on nearly every country, including a 10 percent baseline tariff on all imported goods, and country-specific so-called reciprocal tariffs. Just hours after the reciprocal tariff rates took effect last Wednesday, Trump abruptly changed his mind and put a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs. But Trump is still taxing goods from every country, across the board, at 10 percent at least, and he is escalating his trade war with China, with 145 percent tariffs on Chinese goods—which is already leading to higher prices and serious pain for families and small business across Washington state. Senator Murray has always been vocal about the need to out-compete China, but has warned that waging an all-out trade war with China on a whim will cause serious economic pain for consumers and small businesses across the country.
Even with his “pause,” Trump’s new tariff rates are still the highest in decades, and are estimated to cost American families more than $4,000 per year—the largest tax increase since 1968.
“There is a basic reality everyone needs to understand: a tariff is a tax—and Trump’s new tax is aimed squarely at hardworking Americans. Trump’s tariffs will squeeze small businesses, they will have to raise prices, lay off workers, or possibly even just close up shop. They will throttle our ports as trade plummets—and here in Pierce County that’s a lot of jobs,” said Senator Murray. “This is already painful, and it’s only going to get worse if Congress doesn’t step in, assert its authority on tariffs, and put some certainty and common sense back in the economy.”
“You can’t run a business when you have no idea whether your costs are jumping up and down every other day based on what one person posts on social media. And that uncertainty won’t change as long as we leave this lever in Trump’s hands,” Senator Murray continued. “Even now, as tariffs are already squeezing our economy, he is threatening more in few weeks. Congress has to defuse this economic time bomb. I will keep putting a spotlight on the pain Trump’s chaotic trade war is causing, and I will keep lifting up the voices and the concerns of people in Washington state and putting pressure on my colleagues to act to end these tariffs.”
Washington state has one of the most trade-dependent economies of any state in the country, with 40 percent of jobs tied to international commerce. Washington state is the top U.S. producer of apples, blueberries, hops, pears, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries—all of which risk losing vital export markets due to retaliatory tariffs from key trading partners including Canada. Additionally, more than 12,000 small and medium-sized companies in Washington state export goods and will struggle to absorb the impact of retaliatory tariffs.
Canada is Washington’s largest overall trading partner, accounting for nearly $20 billion in imports and $10 billion in exports. China is the world’s second-largest economy, and Washington state exported over $12 billion in goods to China last year—making China Washington state’s top export partner—and imported $11.2 billion in goods, the most from any country aside from Canada. Trump’s tariffs during his first term were extremely costly for Washington state—for example, India imposed a 20 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. apples, causing Washington apple shipments to India to fall by 99 percent and growers to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in exports.
“The current approach to tariffs has reduced Brown & Haley export sales, raised costs, and created supply chain chaos. So far, it looks like these tit-for-tat tariffs will cost us 50% of our export business. For Brown & Haley to thrive we need stability, common sense, and thoughtfulness in our country’s tariff strategy,” said John Melin, CEO of Brown & Haley, a local Tacoma candy company known for Almond ROCA, which exports its candy to 65 countries worldwide.
“We take our mission as ports seriously. We are strategic in the infrastructure investments we make, our partnerships in the region and across the globe, and the policies we implement that impact our partners. We are grateful to our delegation and to Senator Murray for their attention and advocacy on how these changes impact our ability to fulfill our mission” said Port of Tacoma Commission President and Co-Chair of The Northwest Seaport Alliance John McCarthy.
“Trade and economic development are the core of what we do. At the Port of Seattle it includes air cargo that comes in and out of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the seafood exports from the North Pacific Fishing Fleet that homeports at Fishermen’s Terminal and Terminal 91, and the cruise business that brought 1.9 million visitors last year. It means the cars, tractors, furniture, clothing, technology, machine and auto parts, games, toys, hay, apples, lentils, peas, to name a few, that come through the Northwest Seaport Alliance. We thank Senator Murray for her advocacy for policies that support all these lines of business,” said Port of Seattle Commission President and Co-Chair of The Northwest Seaport Alliance Toshiko Hasegawa. About 90 percent of the Pacific Northwest region’s trade is with Asia, with China accounting for 40 percent of total trade volume in 2024, followed by Japan. The maritime industry supports about 25,000 jobs in the Pacific Northwest.
“Pierce County companies like SAFE Boats and SeaTac Packaging are already grappling with the consequences of an increasingly unstable trade environment,” said Michael Catsi, President and CEO of the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County. “These small businesses play an outsized role in our regional economy, providing family-wage jobs, driving innovation, and anchoring local supply chains. They rely on dependable global partnerships and consistent policy to fulfill contracts and protect local employment. When trade policy shifts without warning, it threatens not just revenue but the livelihoods of workers and the long-term stability of our communities. It takes time to build out new supply chains which does not happen overnight. Washington businesses need certainty, accountability, and a trade strategy that supports sustained growth.”
Senator Murray has been a vocal opponent of Trump’s chaotic trade war and has been lifting up the voices of people in Washington state harmed by this administration’s approach to trade. Senator Murray continues to call on Republicans to end Trump’s trade war—which Congress has the power to do—and take back Congress’ Constitutionally-granted power to impose tariffs. Earlier this month, Senator Murray brought together leaders across Washington state who highlighted how Trump’s ongoing trade war is already a devastating hit to Washington state’s economy, businesses, and our agriculture sector. Senator Murray also took to the Senate floor to lay out how Trump’s chaotic trade war is seriously threatening our economy, American businesses, families’ retirement savings, and so much else. Earlier this week, Senator Murray joined her colleagues in pressing U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer on how the Trump administration’s tariffs are affecting farmers across the country.
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