White House Revises Tariffs on Canadian Goods Ahead of Maine Election
The White House said Friday that it would remove some Canadian products from a list of goods subject to 50% U.S. tariffs while adding others. The changes, made under Section 338 of a 96-year-old trade law, will take effect October 30, four days before the November 3 election.
Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican seeking reelection, announced exemptions for nine categories of products she described as important to her state’s agricultural industries. They include corrugated paper, plastic boxes and packing bags, refrigeration equipment, machinery, and seaweed and algae products. Collins said she had sought relief from administration officials because of the costs tariffs impose on Maine businesses and families.
Less than an hour after Collins’s announcement, the White House released a fact sheet stating that the removed products would be replaced on the tariff list by certain valves, carpets, waste products and other goods. The fact sheet described the change as a refinement of the tariffs’ scope and did not mention Maine.
Collins’s Democratic opponent, Troy Jackson, criticized her role in supporting the administration while seeking exemptions from its trade policies. Tariffs have become an issue in their Senate race as voting is already underway. Maine imports more goods from Canada than from any other country, making changes to U.S.-Canada trade policy particularly relevant to its businesses.
A White House spokesman said the proclamation responds to what the administration considers discriminatory Canadian treatment of U.S. commerce and is intended to protect American farmers, manufacturers and workers.
Collins said she would continue seeking tariff relief and encouraging a broader trade agreement with Canada. Her office did not say whether she had discussed the newly added tariffs while pressing for exemptions. The announcement therefore leaves two distinct changes in place: relief for some Canadian imports and new duties on others.