TUCSON— Last night, President Trump announced on Twitter that his administration will impose an initial 5 percent tariff on all Mexican imports into the United States beginning on June 10th and increase that percentage until the Mexican government stops undocumented immigration to the United States. The details of the President’s policy announcement remain unclear. In response, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

“This reckless decision to slap tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars in Mexican imports to the United States imperils the jobs and livelihoods of millions of Arizona workers and their families. Trump’s willingness to completely upend the economy removes any pretense that he cares about establishing good trade policies with our regional partners and is merely another attempt to exacerbate the crisis at the border and exploit it for his political gain.

“Make no mistake, these tariffs will do little to solve the humanitarian crisis at our border. Instead, it will only harm American consumers, businesses, and workers who will ultimately pay the price. The people of Arizona, asylum seekers, the economy, and our values deserve better than to be disposable pawns in Trump’s depraved game and nonsensical trade policy.”

In 2018, the United States imported more than $346.5 billion Mexican goods including cars, produce, and consumer goods. Mexico is currently Arizona’s largest trading partner, importing $9 billion in goods in 2018 alone.

### 

Stay in touch with Rep. Grijalva:

Newsletter – Facebook – Twitter – Instagram – Website