Ongoing Uncertainty & Consumer Uneasiness About U.S. Economy Growing
Republican lawmakers and business leaders are increasingly worried about the imposed tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada, as unpredictability has raised concerns about the American economy.
Small business owners, who were once optimistic about the promise of deregulation and lower taxes, are now feeling the opposite. The National Federation of Independent Business’ uncertainty index rose four points to 104 in February – it’s second highest reading ever.
Meanwhile, Americans continue to feel the squeeze with rising costs for everyday goods and believe that the promise from elected officials on the campaign trail to drive down costs is not being met.
It’s no wonder Republicans continue to express unease over the economic and political risks, including market instability and rising costs.
Now Americans are left wondering: What does this economic shake up mean in the long run?
Read what Republicans and business leaders are saying:
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD): “What I’m willing to do is give the president some latitude to try and accomplish the objective he seeks to get done here. I’m obviously in a different place on [tariffs], but I’m hoping that the tariffs, when they have achieved their stated objective, will be temporary in nature.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
- Thune: “I’m not a big fan generally of tariffs, unless there’s a reason.” (Punchbowl News, 3/11/25)
Senator John Kennedy (R-LA): “I think if the tariffs do start to cause inflation, I think the president will back away from them, the thing [people] expect the president to fix is high prices.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY): “The stock market is comprised of millions of people who are simultaneously trading. The market indexes are a distillation of sentiment. When the markets tumble like this in response to tariffs, it pays to listen.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
Senator Todd Young (R-IN): “I am hopeful these tariffs will be a short-term step to encourage negotiations rather than a long-term measure that could lead to retaliatory actions impacting Indiana’s ag sector.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX): “Hopefully things will settle down.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
- Cornyn: “Markets prefer stability rather than uncertainty.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD): “We don’t know what this is gonna look like tomorrow.” (The Wall Street Journal, 3/11/25)
Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC): “Business hates uncertainty.” (The Wall Street Journal, 3/11/25)
- Tillis: “When we start losing, you back off. There’s such a thing as strategic retreat. At the end of the day, I think we have more leverage than any other nation. But we gotta be smart. And we don’t have all the leverage.” (The Washington Post, 3/11/25)
Douglas Holtz-Eakin, President, American Action Forum: “It has been a horrific start for the [Trump] economic policy team.” (The Wall Street Journal, 3/11/25)