During Sunday’s broadcast of CNN’s State of the Union, Sen. Chris Murphy (D‑CT) accused President Donald Trump of weaponizing tariffs not to boost U.S. manufacturing, but to enrich himself and reward political allies.
Host Jake Tapper asked Murphy to respond to the recent imposition of tariffs on Canada. Murphy replied: “I think it’s just further confirmation that these tariffs have nothing to do with us. Prices are going up on everything in this country. Manufacturing jobs are leaving. We’ve lost already this year about 30,000 manufacturing jobs.” He went on to say that the tariffs serve as “a political tool that the president uses to help himself, sometimes to enrich himself.”
Murphy cited what he described as disturbing instances of corporate behavior: “You’ve seen companies openly admit that they’re making investments in his cryptocurrency… to try to get better treatment on the tariffs. You saw Apple make a $1 million contribution to his inauguration and then magically get an exemption from the tariffs.” He also claimed the tariffs were being used to punish speakers overseas who criticize Trump, drawing a parallel with what he labeled Trump’s efforts to suppress free speech domestically.
“Those tariffs aren’t about rebuilding our economy. They aren’t about helping regular consumers,” Murphy added. “There’s just — they’re just about giving Trump additional powers to try to benefit himself politically and financially.”
