Republican lawmakers fear the defiant Chinese response to President Trump’s sweeping tariffs leaves the world’s two largest economies hurtling toward a trade war that could last for months.
Republican senators agree with Trump’s claim that China hasn’t dealt fairly with the United States and acknowledge that China needs the U.S. market for its own economic prosperity.
But they worry that the political stakes for Chinese President Xi Jinping may be too high for him to agree to a trade deal with Trump anytime soon, something that could have significant consequences for U.S. exporters, especially farmers, as well as businesses that source cheap goods from China.
“That’s what’s concerning to me. China is all about [saving] face. When they say they’re going to ‘fight to the end,’ that’s concerning to me,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.).
Tillis noted that the United States sources many essential goods from China, which would make it difficult on domestic businesses if trade tensions between the countries escalate.
“When there are so many things that we have allowed — mistakenly, but allowed — to only be manufactured in China, if you’re not getting an exception for like the textile industry and a number of others, I think it’s going to be consequential, and not in a positive way,” Tillis said.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Tuesday floated the possibility that escalating trade tensions with China could impact the market for U.S. debt, and more critically undermine Taiwan’s safety.
“It’s a tit for tat. That’s the problem of a tariff war,” he said.
When asked about the possibility of China not buying U.S. debt, Paul said “there could be other ramifications.”
“It’s even worse than that. If you want to protect freedom in Taiwan, the day there’s no more trade between the U.S. and China is the day something bad will happen to Taiwan,” he warned.
Paul warned that if U.S.-China trade erodes to the point “where China says they have nothing to lose” economically, “that’s what endangers freedom in Taiwan.”
Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), whose home state ships two-thirds of its soybean crop to China and Southeast Asia, said he hopes Trump can get talks started with China soon.
“I’d prefer that they start negotiating. I think that’s where it is going to end up,” he said. “They need our market. Go to any big-box retailer, check out where that stuff is made.”
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told members of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday that China hasn’t signaled that it’s ready to talk. Vietnam, for example, has already lowered its tariffs on almonds, apples and cherries exported from the Pacific Northwest
Greer said about 50 countries have approached the Trump administration to negotiate trade deals, but not China.
“Unfortunately, China for many years seems to be choosing its own path on market access. Again, they have agency in this. They elected to announce retaliation. Other countries did not. Other countries signaled that they’d like to find a path forward on reciprocity. China has not said that,” Greer testified.
The Trump administration on Monday said it was set to impose another 50 percent tariff on China, which would raise the duty on Chinese imports to 104 percent.
Trump on Tuesday posted on Truth Social that China “wants to make a deal, badly, but don’t know how to get it started.”
“We are waiting for their call. It will happen!” he said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) on Tuesday expressed his hope that the Trump administration and Chinese leaders could reach some kind of a deal.
“I think everybody kind of knows my views on tariffs,” he said, referring to his long record of support for free trade and free markets.
But he noted that Trump ran on “the importance of getting other countries to treat us more fairly when it comes to trade, bilateral trade, multilateral trade.”
“He deserves the opportunity to see what kind of deals he can get from some of our trading partners,” Thune added.
Asked about China’s tough response to Trump, Thune said: “I think there’s a lot of rhetoric right now, but I’m hoping that in the end the Chinese like a lot of other countries will come to the table.”
“There is clearly, in my view, room for negotiation that would achieve the objectives that the president has laid out that could be to the benefit of both the U.S. and China,” he added.
China has showed little inclination to make any concessions in response to Trump’s announcement last week that he would impose a 34 percent reciprocal tariff on the country.
China on Friday said it would slap a 34 percent tariff on all U.S. imports, something that sent the U.S. stock market into a steep plunge that same day.
Economic experts, including analysts at Morningstar and Capital Economics, say it’s unlikely that China will ratchet down its tactics anytime soon.
China also suspended imports of sorghum, poultry and bonemeal and placed 27 U.S. companies on a trade restriction list while also launching an antimonopoly investigation into DuPont China Group Co., according to The Associated Press.
China’s Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday accused the Trump administration of “blackmail” and vowed to “fight to the end.”
Republican lawmakers are warning that a protracted trade war with China would hurt farmers as well as major U.S. companies such as Boeing, Caterpillar, John Deere, Nvidia and Intel.
Analysts at UBS estimate that Trump’s tariff fight with China could result in a $350 price increase for Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Apple stock, a staple investment of many mutual funds and 401(k) funds, dropped by another 5 percent on Tuesday, which allowed Microsoft to surpass it as the world’s most valuable public company.
Apple’s stock has dropped roughly 33 percent since its 52-week high in late December.
