- United States
- Wisc.
- Letter
I am a mother of two school-age children, a teacher, and a proud member of my community in Waukesha, Wisconsin. I am opposed to the massive use of tariffs in the last few months of this administration.
Tariffs, historically, have had a mixed rate of success. In limited ways, at brief moments in history, they have had the intended results of boosting various aspects of jobs or economies. However, the vast majority of the time they create more harm than good. Costs on goods and to jobs are more often absorbed by the consumers and people here in the United States.
Our president appears to believe that a barrage of tariffs will help us, but they will not. In fact, they will hit hardest for people like us in Wisconsin. Farmers are already losing markets they usually sell to overseas, and once those markets are lost, they are hard to win back. Countries will more often look for different trade partners, rather than pay more for their food. The farmers also lose out for the things they need to buy that are now under a huge tariff, with materials or parts coming from overseas.
Our personal family budget is already stretched to its limits. My husband and I both work full time jobs, and we work hard to carry only the debt we have to, like our mortgage. But with two growing children and basic costs like food and gas rising by the day -- and our paychecks remaining static -- we are concerned that any more disruptions to the economy will tip us past a point we can manage.
Please speak up for economic policies that actually work, not this idea contrary to economic trends and history that large-scale tariffs will somehow work. They do not work, and history shows that. Speak up to protect the lives and families here in Wisconsin who rely on you, each day, to be our voice.
