Rogers defended Trump’s tariffs that were harming Michigan’s economy and causing Michiganders’ grocery receipts to increase.
Trump’s tariffs have harmed Michigan farmers and impacted Michigan’s manufacturing. Instead of standing up for Michigan families, Rogers defended the damaging tariffs.
[VIDEO] Mike Rogers Supported Trump’s Tariffs To “Correct” Imbalances And Said “This Is Going To Be Hard.” “And so we have to take action now to correct these imbalances. And it's unfair, really, if you think about what the president is saying is, if you want to sell in our country, then you have to let us sell in your country. That is about the most basic thing we can get to. Listen, if this thing goes long and it's hard , it's , you know , we'll have to deal with that when it gets there. But we've already seen trillions of dollars of investment pledged to come back to the United States manufacturing supply chains coming back to the United States. Yeah, this is going to be hard. It's going to be hard for the next few months. I don't think anybody doesn't realize that.” [FNC: America’s Newsroom, 4/14/25]
Mike Rogers Said “We Have To Go Through” Trump’s Trade War. According to Breitbart, “On Trump’s aggressive use of strategic tariffs to bolster American manufacturing jobs and communities, Rogers says voters know the U.S. must ‘break the paradigm where China won’t allow U.S. products in but is taking advantage of our market,’ and that Trump is the dealmaker-in-chief who can make it happen. ‘They believe it’s the right fight to have,’ he said of Michigan voters. ‘Remember, these manufacturers have been told for 30 years, ‘no, no, no, we’re going to do something about China.’ Well, think about where the Democrats are on this. They’re basically arguing, ‘oh no, no, [China] should keep those jobs, let them keep doing it so you can pay 50 cents less for your cheesy pool toy.’ I think people’s mindset has shifted, and they understand this is what we have to go through just to get back to being fair.’” [Breitbart, 4/14/25]
[AUDIO] Mike Rogers Said Tariffs Are “Really Good” For Michigan. “Lloyd Jackson: The big topic is tariffs right now and some uncertainty for the auto industry. Do you think it ultimately is a good thing for our state and the industry here? Mike Rogers: Ultimately I do. I mean, I don't think a permanent tariff on everything is probably the right answer for the country. But targeted tariffs, I think, are really good. They're a tool. I mean, when you get guys like Jamie Dimon who are saying, yeah, targeted tariffs can really make a difference. And remember what this is about China. China. China is not fair in the way it applies its tariffs. And so it makes it uncompetitive purposely for American products to compete in China. And this is about fairness. You know, if you're going to charge 25% on our cars or whatever that tariff might be, we should Why shouldn't we charge 25% for your stuff coming into the country? I mean, why do we put our own businesses at a significant disadvantage? And I know there was a big push for a while or just be a service economy. Well, guess what? You can't have a robust, growing, thriving middle class with just a service economy. It doesn't work. There is a great map. It's very disturbing. It shows in the 2000, the trade, the major trade partners of the United States and 90% of that map, the world map is blue for the United States. 10% was China. Today, in 2024, actually last year, they produced that map. Again, it is 90%, China, 10% the United States. That's just unsustainable. We cannot allow China to subvert our standing as an economic prowess in a great economy. And, you know, you can keep saying, well, you know, just, you know, get we get cheap goods. Listen, I don't care about buying cheap plastic toys from China. I do. When it comes to heavy manufacturing, advanced manufacturing, aerospace, they're trying to take that from us, too. And we just can't let it happen. Tariffs can be an end to that problem. And this is a 30 year problem. This wasn't didn't happen for years. This is a 30 year problem. Going to be really hard to fix. I give the president all the credit in the world for trying to stop the bleeding of our middle class here in America, including Michigan.” [JR Mornings, 4/15/25]
[AUDIO] Mike Rogers Said Tariffs “Can Be Very, Very Effective.” “I think tariffs as a tool, a targeted tool that are temporary, can be very, very effective. And here's why you have to do it. Think of this American automobile industry. 80% of engines and drive train are produced somewhere else, not in the United States, certainly not in Michigan. That's that's really not sustainable for a long term automobile industry. And I'm not talking about just assembly. I'm talking about production of engines and transmissions and all of those things is produced somewhere else around the world. And that that has to end. And by the way, some of those countries are not treated as very fair on the tariff front. We get higher tariffs than they're charging and they're trying to keep our products out of their markets. So we I believe that the less we have to do this at some point. I mean, China showed us today, Brian, why this is so important. They decided they were going to the materials to make these magnets. They were going to stop export of these things, which really hurts a military industry, electric cars, all of these things. And they did it because they can. And we put ourselves in a position to let them do that to us. We cannot sustain this. It's not sustainable if we ever had a major conflict in the world, guess what? Who's building our engines?” [Brian Kilmeade Show, 4/15/25]
Mike Rogers Said Trump’s Tariffs Were “Absolutely” Brining Manufacturing Opportunities To Michigan. According to Breitbart, “Former U.S. Rep Mike Rogers (R-MI), the Trump-endorsed Republican Senate candidate for Michigan, told Sirius XM’s Breitbart News Saturday that President Donald Trump’s tariffs are ‘absolutely’ already having real results as manufacturing opportunities are returning to the Wolverine State. Rogers joined Breitbart News Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle for the nearly 30-minute interview Saturday morning, in which the Senate hopeful highlighted key investments coming into Michigan and the United States that benefit both big and small manufacturers, thanks to Trump’s tariff and trade policies. Rogers keyed in on General Motors’ commitment to invest $4 billion in the United States, part of which will go to a facility in Michigan. He emphasized that it is ‘huge’ that GM is bringing production back to Michigan. ‘And by the way, when that happens, all these small, little manufacturers get more work. This is really good for a state like Michigan,’ he said.” [Breitbart, 8/2/25]
[AUDIO] Mike Rogers Praised Trump’s Tariffs And Claimed That They Were Bringing Back Manufacturing Jobs. “You know, the most important thing about tariffs is getting back to Made in America. And so what we've seen as General Motors announces after that $4 billion in investment expanding the Orion facility right here in Michigan, Ford is coming back. Whirlpool announced it's coming back to the United States. We have other foreign companies realigning their production facilities back here to the United States. And so why is that important? We've lost 30,000 manufacturing jobs since 2019. And so when you look at that, that tells you we have a problem. And China has been eating our lunch on supply chains, on critical minerals. And so all of this helps realign to make sure that Michigan working families and American working families are manufacturing again, which is really the backbone of the middle class.” [Daily Drive Podcast, 9/23/25]
HEADLINE: "Trade War, Drought Squeeze Michigan Farmers Heading To Fall Harvest" [Bridge Michigan, 9/18/25]
HEADLINE: "Tariffs Hit Small Michigan Retailers Hard, Prompting Panic Buying, Cost Cutting" [Detroit Free Press, 5/23/25]
HEADLINE: "Tariffs Weigh Heavy On Detroit Chamber’s State Of The Region As Trump Pledges Additional Levies" [Michigan Advance, 4/1/25]
Detroit Regional Chamber And MichAuto Said Trump’s Proposed Tariffs On Imported Vehicles Would Lead To Dramatic Prices Increases And Supply-Chain Disruptions. According to Reuters, "Two Michigan business groups urged President Donald Trump to halt plans to impose sweeping 25% tariffs on imported vehicles and parts, saying it would lead to dramatic price hikes, supply-chain disruptions and pain in the auto-heavy state. ‘The increased costs would cause significant disruption throughout the supply chain and, perhaps most importantly, lead to significant price increases to the cost to American consumers for vehicles,’ the Detroit Regional Chamber and MichAuto, an automotive and mobility association, said in a letter." [Reuters, 3/31/25]
Ball State University Economist Said Michigan Would Feel The Effects Of Trump’s Tariffs First. According to Michigan Public Radio, "Michigan and other Midwest states will feel the pain of what’s now a trade war before the rest of the country, according to Ball State University economist Michael Hicks. President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an order to impose stiff tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada and China, drawing swift retaliation from the country's North American neighbors in the emerging trade war. […] ‘The pain of this is going to be rather broad,’ but the first to feel the effects will be in states like Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio, said Hicks, who directs Ball State's Center for Business and Economic Research. ‘After the 2018 tariffs [imposed by Trump], it took six to nine months for the Midwest to slip into a manufacturing recession,’ Hicks said. ‘So by middle of 2019, Indiana, Michigan, most of the Midwest was already bleeding manufacturing jobs.’" [Michigan Public Radio, 2/1/25]