Wyoming Senator Defends Trump’s Tariffs: ‘We Haven’t Been Able To Sell One Hamburger In Australia’

Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) defended President Donald Trump’s tariffs during a Monday morning appearance on Fox News, saying that cattle ranchers in his state were grateful for the president’s efforts to balance trade by pushing back against the barriers put in place by other nations.

Barrasso told the hosts of Fox’s “America’s Newsroom” that because of trade barriers imposed by nations like Australia, beef producers were forced into an uneven — and unfair — trade market because they had to compete for domestic sales with countries that wouldn’t even allow their product to be sold abroad.

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.@SenJohnBarrasso: "Congress has given the President more and more authority on tariffs… The cattle producers are saying it is about time… Australia has sold $29 billion worth of beef in the United States, and we haven't been able to sell one hamburger in Australia because of… pic.twitter.com/Dn0SgQ6iqr

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“Congress has given the President more and more authority on tariffs,” Barrasso explained. “Specifically, national security for unfair trade practices, President Trump is fully within his authority, and I appreciate what the president is doing on tariffs, specifically in our home state of Wyoming.”

“In terms of beef, the cattle producers, they are saying it is about time,” he continued. “One of the countries that you just showed on that slide before I came on, Australia — Australia has sold $29 billion worth of beef in the United States, and we haven’t been able to sell one hamburger in Australia because of barriers.”

“They showed Thailand, 30% tariffs on beef coming from the United States,” Barrasso said. “Vietnam, 50%. You look at these numbers, and the ranchers of Wyoming are saying, ‘Thank you, Mr. President, it is about time.'”

The widespread tariffs, introduced last Wednesday during a White House event dubbed “Liberation Day,” have sparked fierce debate both on Capitol Hill and across media outlets as the resulting uncertainty caused the stock market to take a dramatic tumble.

Still, Trump has defended the move and urged those concerned about the market to “hang tough” as the tariffs are used as leverage to bring other nations to the table to negotiate fairer trade arrangements for the United States.