Mike Rogers on Tariffs and Prices: Defending the 2025 Tariffs and What They Cost Michigan

Mike Rogers defended the 2025 tariffs on Fox News on April 14, 2025, saying "we have to take action now to correct these imbalances" and that "this is going to be hard." The Yale Budget Lab estimates current tariffs cost about $1,100 per household a year, and New York Fed economists found nearly 90 percent of the 2025 tariffs were passed through to U.S. import prices.

The same day, the Michigan Senate candidate told Breitbart that the tariff fight "is what we have to go through," and in August 2025 he said Michiganders were "absolutely" seeing results. Over the first half of 2025, Michigan wheat exports fell 89 percent and soybean meal exports 46 percent, according to the state agriculture department.

Mike Rogers's Statements Defending the Tariffs

• Rogers Said on Fox News the Tariffs Would Be "Hard" but Necessary. Mike Rogers said on April 14, 2025: "Listen, if this thing goes long and it's hard, it's, you know, we'll have to deal with that when it gets there ... Yeah, this is going to be hard. It's going to be hard for the next few months." Yale Budget Lab estimates current-law tariffs will raise consumer prices about 0.7 percent.
• Rogers Said Michigan Must "Go Through" the Trade War in April 2025. Rogers told Breitbart that Democrats would let China keep jobs "so you can pay 50 cents less for your cheesy pool toy," adding, "they understand this is what we have to go through just to get back to being fair." For every percentage point increase in average tariffs, New York Fed economists found consumer goods prices rise about a quarter of a percent after one year.
• Rogers Said in August 2025 the Tariffs Were "Really Good" for Michigan. Rogers told Breitbart News Saturday the tariffs were "absolutely" having real results and said, "This is really good for a state like Michigan." That summer, Michigan farmers faced lower crop prices and trade disputes with China that are disproportionally impacting soybean growers.

What the Tariffs Mike Rogers Defended Cost Michigan Families and Farmers

• Tariffs cost households about $1,100 a year. The Yale Budget Lab puts estimated household costs due to tariffs at about $1,100 annually under current law, a cost Michigan families pay in higher prices for goods.
• Michigan farm exports collapsed in the first half of 2025. Michigan soybean meal exports fell 46 percent, wheat 89 percent, fresh cherries 62 percent and fresh apples 58 percent, and one Sparta corn and soybean farmer told Bridge Michigan, "I don't think we're even going to cover expenses."
• Tariffs reach most of Michigan's economy, including 800,000 food and farm jobs. Michigan's budget office says tariffs are raising the cost of housing, groceries, manufacturing and more and affect nearly all of the state's industries, including a food and agriculture sector that supports more than 800,000 Michigan jobs.
• Michigan was expected to feel tariff pain first. Ball State economist Michael Hicks said after the 2018 tariffs "by middle of 2019, Indiana, Michigan, most of the Midwest was already bleeding manufacturing jobs", and warned states like Michigan would feel the 2025 trade war first.

Frequently Asked Questions Mike Rogers on Tariffs and Prices

Last updated: 2026-10-28

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