Tariffs targeting Canada and Mexico could damage the U.S. auto industry, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer warned on Wednesday, just days before President-elect Donald Trump is slated to take office.
Trump has vowed to initiate significant tariffs on goods coming from Canada and Mexico if either country fails to curb illegal immigration and drug trafficking into the United States.
Whitmer, a Democrat, said in a speech in Detroit that imposing tariffs would damage supply chains and slow production lines and would cut “jobs on both sides of the border.”
“Think about this: 70 percent of all the auto parts we make in Michigan go directly to our neighbors … the only winner in this equation is China. They would love nothing more than to watch us cripple America’s auto ecosystem all by ourselves. This is a matter of national security,” said Whitmer, who has been floated as a possible presidential candidate….