During remarks on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) spoke about President Trump's 10% tariffs.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Without objection. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, when it comes to new tax breaks for billionaires, Republicans are going to work around the clock, stay through the night.
00:10But when it comes to stopping Trump's trade war for good, when it comes to stopping a tax increase to aim squarely at working families, when it comes to stopping the complete uncertainty that is chipping away at confidence in our economy,
00:28most Republicans can't be bothered. Never mind that Trump is now pushing us into a recession and sending the markets whipsawing back and forth every time he tweets.
00:41Trump may be retreating now from some of his most outlandish tariffs, but make no mistake, his trade war is far from over.
00:50First of all, he is still taxing goods from every country across the board at 10% at least.
01:00That means higher prices and serious pain for families and small businesses across our country.
01:07Not to mention, he is only escalating this boneheaded trade war with China with 145% tariff.
01:16There is no question, we are in fierce competition with China.
01:21I chaired a committee hearing focused on this.
01:24We need to be competing to win.
01:27But that is not what Trump is doing.
01:30Do my Republican colleagues understand it is not setting America up for success to launch an all-out trade war with the second largest economy in the world?
01:41On a whim.
01:42And while people might be temporarily relieved by this so-called pause on the even higher tariffs,
01:49the fact of the matter is that Trump is only delaying them.
01:54The threat of even larger taxes that American families simply cannot afford is still like a time bomb set to blow up our economy in 90 days.
02:05And if Congress does not defuse that economic bomb, there is a real threat that it will blow up balance sheets for small businesses and farms,
02:16college savings accounts for our students, and your retirement savings, along with a lot more.
02:22And I have to emphasize the uncertainty, the constant, by-the-hour reversal of federal policy, that alone is already causing massive harm.
02:33How on earth are you supposed to build your business if your costs skyrocket on a tweet?
02:42How are you supposed to plan for retirement when the president is sending your 401k on a rollercoaster ride every time he's in a bad mood?
02:51How are we ever going to rebuild trust, trust with our trading partners across the world,
02:58when the message the United States is sending right now is that our trade relationships are built on sand?
03:05And there is no logic to the tariffs the United States will impose.
03:09How are they supposed to feel good about negotiating with a country where one man can totally burn down the economy
03:17and Congress will not lift a finger to stop him?
03:21Instead of building stronger trade agreements, Trump is pushing our partners away
03:27and pushing them towards striking deals with China and our other adversaries.
03:33And mark my words, this chaotic chapter is not over, as much as Republicans want to pretend otherwise.
03:40I have been hearing from small businesses who are in an absolute panic because of Trump's terrorist threats.
03:47Car dealerships are seeing sales plummet because Trump is sending prices higher.
03:54Restaurants are trying to stock up on any goods they can because their ingredients are about to get more expensive.
04:00Our growers are bracing for rising operating costs and retaliatory tariffs,
04:06and that will drive up the prices at our grocery stores.
04:1010% across-the-board tariffs are still bad enough to ruin families' finances.
04:16And while Republicans are showing with their own actions that they couldn't care more about shoveling trillions,
04:23and yes, that is T, trillions, at billionaires,
04:28Trump has said in his own words, in his own words, that he, quote,
04:31couldn't care less about the pain his tariffs are already causing for Americans.
04:36I'm not kidding.
04:37He actually said that about automobile tariffs.
04:40This is what happens when you only have billionaires in charge.
04:45Because, of course, Trump doesn't care if the car prices go up by a couple thousand dollars.
04:51Of course, Elon Musk doesn't care if your groceries are getting more expensive,
04:55at the same time Republicans are cutting nutrition programs, by the way.
04:59Of course, the richest people in the world don't care if your nest egg is crushed,
05:03or your small business shutters, or your house gets foreclosed on, or your kid can't go to college.
05:10Billionaires are going to be fine.
05:11After all, they're still getting a tax cut.
05:14But I wasn't set here to fight for billionaires.
05:17Actually, none of us were.
05:18We're here to fight for families back home.
05:21And they are already starting to get crushed by Trump's tariffs.
05:25And they are bracing for impact if Trump doubles down in 90 days.
05:31Or, who knows, maybe Trump changes his mind again tomorrow.
05:34It's anyone's guess at this point.
05:36Which is, by the way, the problem here.
05:40And another thing, if this is about American manufacturing, tell us.
05:44Why are plants and new investments being canceled?
05:47Why has Trump been freezing and outright canceling grants that we passed
05:51to support chips manufacturing or clean energy, and more, killing American jobs?
05:58And let's keep in mind, these tariffs affect building and construction, too.
06:03Trump is actually making it more expensive to build those factories in America.
06:09And don't forget, President Trump is still promising more tariffs.
06:14He said this week, this week, he wants to put tariffs on medicine.
06:19Well, I've got to tell you one thing I have never heard, not in a single meeting,
06:24not once in my entire career as a senator, is someone saying,
06:28gee, I really wish my prescriptions were more expensive.
06:31Drug costs are out of control.
06:34Families are already skipping meals or rationing doses.
06:38There are real stakes here.
06:39There is real damage already happening in this country
06:42because of Trump's new taxes and this ongoing chaos.
06:47We here cannot ignore this harm, especially when the threat is still there.
06:53When you're putting out a fire, you don't say, oh, great, it's smaller, I'm done.
06:57You keep going until the fire is put out.
07:00This fire, this fire is still raging.
07:03And if we don't act here, folks back home are the ones who are going to get burned.
07:08And before too long, in 90 days, we could see even worse price increases come roaring back.
07:14Because, let's be real, Trump has no exit strategy.
07:20That much is already painfully clear.
07:23It was clear when he announced tariffs that were calculated using ridiculous math.
07:29It was clear when he repeatedly doubled down on these threats against our allies.
07:35And it was clearer than ever when he backtracked on the most absurd tax hikes.
07:41This does not have the hallmarks of a grand strategy.
07:46And it's all the more reason why Congress, us, needs to step in and put this mess to an end.
07:52Trump's trade war is all pain and no plan.
07:56We could be passing legislation right here to reject this chaos.
08:02Here's what everyone, my colleagues, my constituents, the markets around the world all need to understand.
08:09This chaos will not be over for good unless we, here in Congress, vote to end it.
08:16Because whatever Trump tweets today, he can reverse tomorrow.
08:20Whatever deal he may strike one minute, he may rip up the next.
08:24We know this about him.
08:26He proves it at every opportunity.
08:29We, here in Congress, we are the off-ramp, if Republicans decide to be.
08:35We are the check on presidential power.
08:38We are the kill switch for Trump's trade war.
08:42And, by the way, we're about to be out of town for two weeks.
08:45I cannot understand why any Republican would want to leave this business unfinished,
08:51want to leave this economic time bomb ticking,
08:53want to hand over our constitutionally granted power to impose tariffs.
09:00But I can tell you, for the next two weeks, I'm going to be going across my home state of Washington,
09:05raising this alarm.
09:06I'm going to be meeting with families, small businesses,
09:09people who are paying the cost of Trump's new tax increase,
09:13and who are going to see their world turned upside down
09:16if we do not take action to stop this from getting worse.
09:20And when we get back here in two weeks, you can bet your bottom dollar,
09:24I will lift those stories up as high as I can.
09:27I will call for action as loud as I can.
09:31And I'm going to keep a bright and burning spotlight on all of the chaos Trump has caused.
09:37And I will keep the pressure on all of our colleagues.
09:40I will not let Republicans off the hook on this.
09:43We can put an end to this.
09:46The costs are just going to be adding up.
09:48The carnage is going to continue to pile higher.
09:51How long do you want to wait?
09:53My vote?
09:54Not one more second.
09:56Thank you, Mr. President.
09:57I yield the floor.
10:00Suggestions I can confirm?
10:02The clerk will call the roll.
10:03Ms. Also-Brooks.
10:04Thank you, Mr. President.