ICYMI: In Tacoma, Senator Murray Meets with Local Businesses, Port Commissioners to Discuss How Trump’s Chaotic Trade War is Hurting Washington State
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
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Vancouver, WA— Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion in Vancouver highlighting how local businesses, ports, and the overall economy in Washington state is suffering from President Trump’s senseless and chaotic trade war. Senator Murray was joined for the discussion by John Rudi, CEO of Thompson Metal Fab in Vancouver; Miriam Halliday, CEO of Workforce Southwest Washington; Jared Moultrie, Vice President of the International Longshore & Warehouse Workers’ Union (ILWU) Local 4 in Vancouver; Augusto Bassanini, CEO of United Grain; and Mark Wilson, Executive Director of the Port of Kalama.
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 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.
“Trump’s tariffs are a tax—a tax that will hit hardworking Americans the most. Families will be paying higher prices, small businesses will have to lay off workers, and Washington’s ports will be gutted as trade drops. That’s a lot of jobs on the line in our ports like Kalama and Vancouver along the Columbia River,” said Senator Murray. “Congress has the power to step in and put a stop to these senseless tariffs, we can bring back certainty to protect American businesses and the economy.”
“Businesses can’t function when they are waiting to see if Trump will change his mind again about what countries will have tariffs, and at what rate, as if this should be something decided on a whim,” Senator Murray continued. “Every morning small business owners, port longshoremen, warehouse workers, and families wake up wondering if today will be the day they have to close up shop or will lose their job. Congress needs to step up and put an end to these tariffs—but we need Republicans to join us in order to do that. I will keep shining a light on the consequences of Trump’s painful trade war will bring and amplifying the voices and concerns of people in Washington state.”
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 second-most in imports 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.
“Tariffs simply add cost to major infrastructure projects, and there are very few ways the additional cost impacts of tariffs can be reduced or mitigated,” said John Rudi, CEO of Thompson Metal Fab, a veteran-owned, Vancouver-based metal fabrication company that makes products for the gas and oil industries, and is entering new markets creating products for nuclear, high-tech, and renewable energies. “There are serious concerns about the impact of tariffs on projects that have already been contracted or bid—and an even larger concern than the direct financial impact of tariffs is the uncertainty it creates. Uncertainly only delays, and possibly freezes, major industrial projects. When work is delayed, highly-skilled workers are lost, resulting in long-term impacts to industrial capacity. And once industrial demand stabilizes and returns to normal, the surge in business can result in inflationary costs due to increased competition for workers and resources… Senator Murray has been a strong and consistent advocate for job creation and infrastructure projects in our region and we are pleased to have her visit today to discuss how businesses and the local workforce are impacted by tariffs.”
“The continued volatility in international tariff strategies is creating significant challenges for workforce development across industries in Southwest Washington,” said Miriam Halliday, CEO of Workforce Southwest, the Local Workforce Development Board designated as the policy, planning and oversight body for the public workforce system in Clark, Cowlitz, and Wahkiakum counties. “Companies are increasingly hesitant to expand or invest in talent due to rising costs and economic uncertainty. For instance, a mid-sized IT Managed Service Provider located in Vancouver WA is facing a 15% increase in order costs, making it difficult to forecast budgets and commit to workforce growth. Similarly, a mid-sized die casting manufacturer located in Vancouver WA has paused its expansion this quarter—not due to lack of demand, but because financial institutions are withholding loans for new equipment out of recession fears. As a result, plans to hire and upskill workers have been deferred, highlighting how external economic pressures are directly stalling local and regional workforce development.”
“Our ports face significant challenges and uncertainties in light of potential trade wars,” said Jared Moultrie, Vice President of the International Longshore & Warehouse Workers’ Union (ILWU) Local 4 in Vancouver, representing dock workers in the region. “In 2024, the Port of Vancouver supported nearly 20,000 jobs and generated $2.9 billion in regional economic benefits. United Grain Corporation, Longshoremen, Railroad workers, Tugboat crews, Truck operators, and Farmers from the American West and Midwest facilitated the movement of 5.9 million metric tons of agricultural commodities through the Port of Vancouver. The retaliatory tariffs imposed by China have the potential to significantly reduce employment opportunities for these men and women and diminish the economic benefits within our regionThe Port of Vancouver operates as a breakbulk port, and proposed tariffs would heavily impact everything we handle. Steel is projected to experience an estimated 30 percent decrease, having never recovered from the previous set of tariffs. Currently, we service two aluminum ships per month and conduct weekly aluminum loadouts onto trucks or railcars. The aluminum sector would be seriously jeopardized if tariffs were to deepen. As the number one importer of Subaru vehicles, we are already anticipating around a 20 percent decrease in cars arriving at our dock.”
“At Local 4, our workers are concerned about job security due to the proposed tariffs. We are already contending with rising car payments, mortgage payments, and costs of goods and services. We worry about whether we will be able to afford our children’s tuition, take planned vacations, make substantial purchases, or even dine out. The trickle-down effect on regional companies, truck drivers, farmers, small businesses, and everyone in between could be devastating,” Moultrie continued. “We extend our gratitude to Senator Murray for her dedication and continued commitment to supporting the ILWU and our ports, working-class individuals, our region, our state, and the United States of America.”
“We greatly appreciate Senator Murray’s engagement and efforts to understand how the proposed tariffs are impacting American grain exports,” said Augusto Bassanini, CEO of United Grain Corporation, which sources grain and oilseeds from more than 2,000 suppliers in the Pacific Northwest and Northern Plains. “To help the 2,000 American farmers we work with remain competitive in the global market, we need certainty to navigate a global marketplace so we can continue to create jobs, domestic economic development opportunities and feed the world.”
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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