Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that she did not oppose tariffs.
However, she said President Donald Trump’s tariffs were “reckless and “chaotic.”
Slotkin said, “I think most of us aren’t against tariffs full-stop. I think tariffs are an important tool in the tool kit. I think it’s just the way he’s handling tariffs is the way he’s handling everything else right now. We want change, but there’s reckless change, and then there’s responsible change. The way that he’s on again, off again, you know, pounding Canada as if they’re the exact same thing as China, it just creates this chaotic feeling.”
She added, “Michigan is probably going to be one of the most affected states in the entire country between our manufacturing sector and our farmers. I’m not against it in principle, especially against China, but Canadians? As the state that, for our farmers, that’s our number one market, Canada. I just want a scalpel and not a sledgehammer for these things.”
Host Kristen Welker said, “Just to be clear, you oppose the tariffs against Canada and what about Mexico?”
Slotkin said, “So I think, look, especially the way Secretary Lutnick was just talking about fentanyl, I just want to be clear, we’re a couple of miles from the U.S.-Canada border right now. The fentanyl coming over the Canadian border last year totaled 43 pounds, total. That’s a different thing than what’s going on at the southern border. We know how to manage our border, provide security for our border. We’ve been doing it seamlessly for years.”
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