The “strongest Trump supporter” in the Senate, Ted Cruz, has warned about the risk the tariffs bring with them to the US economy and job market. On his podcast, he mentioned that Trump’s tariffs could lead to the biggest tax hike in a “long,long time”. While taking a tone of caution, he suggested that the administration’s actions could potentially “hurt jobs and hurt America”.
Cruz’s growing concerns over Trump’s tariffs crusade is testament to similar growing mistrust among the Republicans. From every industry, from automotive to fashion, consumers are fearing the increasing prices due to increased import duty. Stellantis, an auto-industry giant has temporarily shut operations in Mexico and Canada fearing the same leading to over 900 layoffs.
After Trump unilaterally imposed tariffs as high as 50% on its “allies”, some Republicans have shown interest in bringing Congress in for approvals of such measures through legislation. While Ted Cruz has not signed the bill, he conceded that if countries back off their tariffs in response to Trump’s moves, it would be “great” and strengthen the American industries.
In his podcast he conveyed that reciprocal tariffs from countries could be “terrible for America” as Trump’s tariffs would remain in place. Expressing his concern for inflation and rising prices of common commodities he mentioned GM, Ford and Chrysler’s prediction of car prices rising by $4,500 as early as June.
Expressing his worries on his podcast he also said that there are “some voices within the administration want to continue these tariffs forever and forever.”
The upcoming midterm elections of 2026, as Cruz said, could be a “bloodbath” politically if the US goes into a “bad recession” however, he does expect a extreme consequences even if Trump’s tariffs performed well. The global tariff frenzy US President Trump has singlehandedly levied, sent not only China but also the world into a spiral of economic survival response.