U.S. importers, not foreign countries, pay Trump's Canada tariffs

AP-NORC poll: 65% of U.S. adults blame Trump’s policies more than other factors for high prices

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has claimed that foreign countries pay his tariffs. The Associated Press reported that U.S. importers pay them, and that those importers often face the choice of passing higher costs on to their customers or absorbing them.

The Associated Press reported an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll of 2,140 U.S. adults, conducted Sept. 24-28, as the Nov. 3 midterm elections approached. The poll found that 65% now blame Trump’s policies for persistently high prices more than factors outside his control. The Associated Press said the poll result was “signaling weariness over his aggressive use of tariffs and unhappiness with the war with Iran, which has driven up the price of gasoline.”

Trump is exempting some imports, including plywood sheets, packing crates and some machinery, from the 50% tariffs he imposed over the summer on $20 billion worth of Canadian products, with the changes scheduled to take effect Oct. 30. The White House said the president was seeking to offset “the burden to U.S. commerce while better serving the public interest.”

The Associated Press reported that Trump was seeking to help Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a tough reelection battle in Maine. Collins, locked in a tight race with Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, issued a statement saying she had spoken with Trump’s top trade negotiator, Jamieson Greer, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick “about the toll tariffs are taking on Maine families, businesses, farmers, and growers.”

“Many of our farmers and growers rely on specialized equipment, packaging materials, and other products from Canada that are either unavailable from American suppliers or cannot be replaced without incurring significant expense,” Collins said. She said she asked for tariff relief for such products “and stressed the burdens additional costs impose on Maine businesses and families.” She said she would seek “additional relief from tariffs and encourage a broader trade agreement with Canada, our neighbor, ally, and largest trading partner.”

Collins complained that Trump’s levies were hurting Maine farms and businesses that rely on Canadian imports when U.S.-made alternatives are not available. Her office cited the example of Maine wild blueberry growers who need specialized harvesting boxes from Canada that work with their processing equipment.

Trump used a Depression-era trade law to impose tariffs on Canadian imports, the Associated Press reported. Trump charged that Canada discriminates against U.S. dairy, auto and alcoholic beverage producers. Canada responded with tariffs of 15% to 50% on American products, matching Trump’s import taxes dollar for dollar.

Last month, Trump imposed a ban on $1 billion worth of Canadian imports, including alcoholic beverages, dairy products and motorcycles.

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement: “Trump’s desperate, 11th hour attempt to save Susan Collins’ political career is an admission that American voters are rejecting his toxic tariff policies.”