Why Democrats should use their new power to embrace Trump's tariffs

By Jon Toomey

Blaming tariffs on manufactured goods for the soaring price of gasoline is the wrong solution to the affordability crisis

Democrats could reclaim President Donald Trump's economic argument by embracing tariffs.

Republican election losses in the Carolinas, Georgia and Texas have given Democrats an opportunity larger than control of Congress. They now have a chance to reclaim the economic argument Donald Trump once used to break into their working-class coalition: that America should make more of what it consumes, and the government should defend its manufacturing workers.

To fully seize this opportunity, Democrats must accurately diagnose the current affordability crisis. And blaming tariffs on manufactured goods for the soaring price of gasoline is the wrong solution.

Let's start with the numbers. The latest available consumer-price index covering September showed the following changes over the preceding year:

-- Gasoline: up 34.2%

-- Piped natural gas: up 5.0%

-- Electricity: up 4.4%

-- Shelter: up 3.2%

-- Groceries: up 1.8%

-- Consumer goods, excluding food and energy: up 0.7%

Essentially, inflation was up 3.7% as energy prices surged. However, consumer goods - the broad category containing many imported manufactured products - recorded a much smaller increase.

Monthly data make this distinction clear. Gasoline jumped 9.1% in September and accounted for more than half of that month's inflation increase. However, grocery prices fell 0.1%. Families were still struggling with expensive food, but groceries were not driving the latest monthly acceleration.

All of this stems from an energy shock with a clear explanation. The Energy Information Administration reported that attacks on Middle East oil infrastructure and tankers pushed Brent crude (BRN00) to an average of $114 a barrel in September, up $23 from August.

None of this was caused by a tariff on imported steel, for example. And tariffs aren't driving grocery inflation, either. Numerous qualifying food imports - including coffee, tea, cocoa, spices, bananas, oranges, tomatoes and beef - are exempt from tariffs.

Democrats must recognize this distinction - that an oil-driven price surge requires action on energy supply, infrastructure and geopolitical risk. Conversely, removing trade protections on America's steel mills and other key industries won't solve disrupted oil shipping.

Consider also that targeted manufacturing tariffs have a solid record. The U.S. International Trade Commission estimated that, from 2018 through 2021, Section 232 tariffs - which the Trump White House initiated in its first term and the Biden administration largely retained - increased domestic U.S. steel production by 1.9% and aluminum production by 3.6%.

This gives Democrats an opportunity to pursue a meaningful agenda. Targeted tariffs should be tied to domestic investment and production. U.S. trade laws should be strongly enforced against subsidized imports. And federal government purchasing power should be fully leveraged through domestic procurement.

These are steps that fit comfortably within the party's pro-worker and pro-manufacturing tradition. For decades, Democrats built lasting political strength by defending collective bargaining, investing in productive capacity and supporting heartland manufacturing communities. Consider that in 1980, at the dawn of the Reagan era, the Democratic Party platform explicitly called for safeguarding domestic industry against unfair trade practices.

This is the opportunity Donald Trump saw in 2016 - that America's industrial communities had been left behind. Voters viewed Washington as an elite group prioritizing cheap imports over their own livelihoods. Beginning with his first campaign, Trump wisely made defending American production central to his political identity.

Now, however, Democrats can compete for ownership of the same commitment.

For the next two years, Democrats should work with President Trump to expand domestic manufacturing, and the good-paying jobs it provides, through targeted trade measures and domestic investment. That means bringing manufacturers and labor together to negotiate policies that make "Made in USA" commercially viable.

Policymakers should start with steel, essential medicines, electrical equipment and other strategic industries. Washington should use federal purchasing commitments to give domestic manufacturers confidence to invest. At the same time, strong enforcement of existing U.S. trade laws should be used to prevent subsidized foreign competitors from erasing new gains.

Republicans must learn from the election, too. If congressional Republicans pursue offshoring as an acceptable cost of doing business, Democrats should push back with a credible alternative - a manufacturing agenda that values good wages and productive jobs.

By 2028, the Democratic Party could campaign on factories expanded, essential goods produced at home, stronger supply chains and better-paying jobs. Those are results that would give Democrats a concrete economic record to put before voters.

The election has opened the door. Democrats should walk through it with a commitment to American production - and make the factory floor central to their party's future.

Jon Toomey is president and CEO of the Coalition for a Prosperous America, which represents U.S. producers and workers.

-Jon Toomey

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11-06-26 0830ET