PHOENIX—Today, Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) issued the following statement after the Trump Administration announced it would levy 25% across-the-board tariffs on Mexico and Canada starting February 1, 2025:
“Let’s call this what it is: a tax increase on Arizonans. Families will pay more out of pocket for groceries and businesses will eat more into their bottom line to cover the higher costs of goods – not to mention the tens of thousands of Arizona jobs supported by cross-border commerce that are now at risk.
Not only does this not make sense from an economic standpoint – it’s short-sighted foreign policy. We do more business with Mexico than we do with any other nation, including China. To win the economic competition with China, we should be building closer relationships with our North American allies instead of pushing them away.”
Stanton is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and serves on the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. When he got to Congress in 2019, he worked with the Trump administration to finalize and pass the USMCA trade agreement. Mexico is Arizona’s largest trading partner—the state imported $11.8 billion worth of goods last year alone.
Stanton is the former Mayor of Phoenix, Arizona, and led 18 trade delegations to Mexico and Canada during his tenure.