Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers is breaking with President Donald Trump on one of his main economic priorities.
“Drinking Labatt wine and watching the Red Wings, man, it doesn’t get much better than this in Michigan. Here in Michigan, we know Canada is not our enemy. We need to end this tariff war now,” Rogers said in a statement. event advertising release Tuesday.
It’s the clearest sign yet that Trump’s trade war poses a challenge to some Midwestern Republicans as Rogers races against Democratic candidate Abdul-Sayed, who is seeking to become the country’s first Muslim senator.
“As a Michigan senator, I will bring bipartisanship to lower prices. That’s a top priority. Abdul, he wants to hit Michigan families with the largest $3,000 tax increase in history. I’m Mike Rogers, and I’m approving this because I’m actually going to put dollars back in your pocket,” the Republican said at the bar.
The ad will air across the state as part of a seven-figure coordinated buy between Rogers’ campaign and the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
The new message marks a significant shift in tone from Rogers, who said in August that Trump was right to impose tariffs on Michigan’s northern neighbor.
“Once again, Michiganders are being forced to live with the consequences of failed leadership by Democratic officials in Washington. For 25 years, Michigan’s two U.S. senators have put their political clout and party popularity ahead of the interests of the people who elected them,” Rogers explain in an August campaign press release. “President Trump is right to put America first – tariffs are necessary but not a one-size-fits-all solution.”
El-Sayed hit back at Rogers’ ad, calling the Republican candidate “not a serious guy” and joking that he has “too many of those Rabat.”
“You’ve been cheering for this tariff war from the beginning, and now you’re going back on it because your poll numbers are plummeting,” he said Said on X. “Donald is the reason we’re in the trade war. He’s the reason you’re running.”
The economic crunch has given Rogers’ new message even more traction. one New daily wire analysis Liz Mair found that the cost of a weekly Aldi grocery basket in Macomb County jumped from $85.36 at the end of March to $97.25 at the end of September, an increase of 13.9%, the largest increase among the seven counties surveyed. Meier pointed to tariffs as one of the factors driving higher food prices, including sharp increases in canned food prices after tariffs hit Canadian imports and materials used to make tin cans.
Natural gas prices are another pressure point for Michigan consumers. The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in Michigan is about $4.40, which is slightly higher than the national average. According to AAA.