Political Quotes

“Madam President, on so-called ``Liberation Day'' this week, President Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on all of our trading partners--the size, the scope, and the impact of which have not been seen for nearly 100 years. The last time our Nation imposed tariffs of this magnitude, it was when Republicans passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act in the 1930s. And when they did that, it crashed our economy and drove the United States further into the Great Depression. It was a history lesson that should never be repeated. Let me say that again. It was a history lesson that should never be repeated. But, yesterday, Donald Trump imposed far-reaching tariffs at a rate higher than Smoot-Hawley, higher than it was then with those catastrophic consequences. The history is clear. This strategy does not work and can have absolutely catastrophic consequences. It is no surprise the President's tariff announcement sent shock waves through our economy, dropping markets to their lowest level since the COVID pandemic in 2020. Just yesterday, the Dow Jones Average dropped more than 1,600 point--a 4-percent decline. The S&P 500 companies lost a combined--this is a big number--$2.4 trillion in value. And as Wall Street opened today, we are, unfortunately, seeing the market continue to plummet--as I speak right now, another $2 trillion lost. That is quite a record for the President, to lose Americans $4 trillion in 2 days. That has never been done before. That is a record. Let's just get this straight.…”