A growing number of lawmakers are pushing back on a pair of trade-related decisions President Donald Trump has announced in recent days, including his move to allow more foreign beef into the United States<\/a> along with an escalating tariff fight with Canada<\/a>.<\/p>\n Republican congressmen from cattle states warn that the new tariffs from Canada could raise prices for American consumers and that Trump’s beef plan could harm American ranchers. All of this is coming as the midterm elections are less than three months away and Republicans are under pressure over the cost of living.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lawmakers from farm states say Trump is favoring foreign beef over American ranchers\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Trump’s announcement that he would temporarily lift tariffs on imported ground beef raised alarms with many Republicans from agricultural states who argued that while there is a need to lower grocery prices, this decision does it at the expense of American ranchers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nebraska Republican Sen. Deb Fischer who is a cattle rancher herself posted on X that “flooding the market with foreign beef hurts our livestock industry and undermines the long-term solution: growing the U.S. cattle herd to meet demand.”<\/p>\n Another close Trump ally, Montana Republican Sen. Tim Sheehy, also criticized the administration’s decision and said he even advised against it.<\/p>\n “I\u2019ve advised President Trump against this course of action for a year because American ranchers have been struggling against the packer monopoly for decades, and this will further harm them – most of whom are MAGA Republicans,\u201d Sen. Sheehy posted on social media.<\/p>\n “… the reality is this action will make it more difficult for American ranchers to rebuild our herd and bring prices down for the American people. And most importantly, this will harm our ranching families who feed the nation.”<\/p>\n Packages of ground beef are displayed in a cooler at a store, Aug. 24, 2026, in Los Angeles.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Justin Sullivan\/Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n GOP Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas called Trump’s action “ill-advised.”<\/p>\n “Beef prices are too high for a simple reason: Our cattle herd is too small. Imported beef below market prices will only put more pressure on our cattlemen.\u00a0I have advised the President against this\u00a0ill-advised action\u00a0in the past and I now urge him to reconsider. We need to support our cattlemen, grow the herd, and let the market work,” Cotton said in a social media post over the weekend.<\/p>\n Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson of Iowa, who is running for Senate and received Trump’s endorsement in the race, called the move “a bad idea.”<\/p>\n “I want to lower prices but this is a bad idea. Iowa cattle producers raise the highest quality beef in the world. They’ve faced tough market conditions for years, and increasing beef imports would lead to more uncertainty and instability for our farmers,” Hinson wrote in a post on X.<\/p>\n Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who spoke with reporters at the Capitol on Monday, slammed the administration for causing an issue related to affordability so close to the midterms.\u00a0<\/p>\n President Donald Trump speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, August 24, 2026.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Jim Watson\/AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n “If you think that providing subsidized beef for some period of time is going to make farmers happy and prices go down on a systemic basis, you\u2019re wrong. Doesn\u2019t happen,” the North Carolina Republican said.<\/p>\n “We\u2019ve got 71 days and right now we don’t have a positive message to tell farm country,” he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n The White House said that the president has “repeatedly affirmed his support for America\u2019s ranchers and farmers.”<\/p>\n “While the Administration will be easing tariffs on beef imports to address a short-term supply crunch, the Administration is simultaneously working closely with ranchers to grow America\u2019s cattle-herd size, which is currently at a multi-decade low,” White House spokesman Kush Desai wrote in a statement.<\/p>\n Lawmakers react to uncertainty amid fluctuating Canada negotiations<\/strong><\/p>\n As trade talks with Canada broke down after months of negotiations, leaders on both sides of the border have escalated their attacks, threatening to raise tariffs on goods coming into their respective country — garnering pushback from lawmakers who have close economic ties with Canada.<\/p>\n Flags adorn the ArcelorMittal Dofasco steel plant as trade tensions escalate over U.S. tariffs and retaliatory measures by Canada in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Aug. 24, 2026.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Carlos Osorio\/Reuters<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who is running for reelection in Maine, argued the retaliatory tariffs will mean higher costs for families. Collins has been an ardent opponent of Trump\u2019s Canada tariffs in the past.\u00a0<\/p>\n “The on-again\/off-again trade talks between the U.S. and Canada lead to higher costs, risk, and uncertainty for Maine businesses. If the Administration proceeds with these tariffs, they will increase costs for Maine families, as most businesses will have no choice but to pass on the tariffs to their customers through higher prices,” she wrote in a post on X.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet despite her opposition, Trump’s threats are now becoming a campaign talking point as Democratic challengers attempt to tie their Republican opponent to Trump’s policies.<\/p>\n Collins’ Democratic challenger Troy Jackson called the tariffs a “direct tax on working families.”<\/p>\n “Having spent most of my life working along the border, I know how vital trade with Canada is to Maine. Trump\u2019s tariffs are a direct tax on working families,” ABC News has reached out to the White House for reaction to the Republicans’ comments.<\/p>\n And in Michigan, a state that has a robust trading partnership with Canada, Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed said Republican Rep. Mike Rogers would be a “rubber stamp” for Trump in the Senate as Rogers has largely defended the president’s trade strategy, arguing that economic pressure on Canada is necessary to protect American jobs.<\/p>\n “Trump is escalating a trade war with Canada for his own vanity,” El-Sayed wrote in a social media post. “Even before this new round, Canadian tariffs were costing Michigan families an additional $3,200 a year. It\u2019s going to get much worse.”<\/p>\n ABC News has reached out to the Rogers campaign for comment.<\/p>\n The White House said the tariffs put Americans first.<\/p>\n “Countless American workers, farmers, and businesses have borne the brunt of America’s lopsided trade relations, including with Canada which has demanded total access to the American market without reciprocity,” Desai wrote in a statement. “President Trump will never stop fighting to put Americans and America First.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"America\"](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/5cd7d02c-2df6-41de-95d5-e93a7eb3a19d\/beef-gty-er-260824_1787604855808_hpEmbed_3x2.jpg?w=375 "\\"America\\"")
<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>![\"Ashley](\"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/7b29e31b-b929-48d1-bca6-b46220f5631e\/donald-trump-1-gty-gmh-260824_1787598066067_hpMain.jpg?w=375 "\\"Ashley")
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