
Trump’s trade war with Canada looms over key races
Clip: 9/8/2026 | 4m 25sVideo has Closed Captions
Trump’s trade war with Canada looms over key congressional races
President Trump’s tariff policies are shaping key races for control of Congress this fall. Geoff Bennett discussed the impact on the midterms with congressional correspondent Lisa Desjardins.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Major corporate funding for the PBS News Hour is provided by BDO, BNSF, Consumer Cellular, American Cruise Lines, and Raymond James. Funding for the PBS NewsHour Weekend is provided by...

Trump’s trade war with Canada looms over key races
Clip: 9/8/2026 | 4m 25sVideo has Closed Captions
President Trump’s tariff policies are shaping key races for control of Congress this fall. Geoff Bennett discussed the impact on the midterms with congressional correspondent Lisa Desjardins.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Where to Watch PBS News Hour
PBS News Hour is available to stream on pbs.org and the PBS app.
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipGEOFF BENNETT: Let's turn now to how President Trump's tariff policies are shaping key races for control of Congress this fall.
For that, we turn to our congressional correspondent, Lisa Desjardins.
Lisa, it's always great to see you.
So let's start with a state that we just touched on, Michigan.
It's a key battleground.
Help us understand why.
LISA DESJARDINS: Wolverine State has some big paws and has important races in both the House and the Senate.
Let's start with the House, though.
There, you see four House races that are critical to control of the House.
And there you see in yellow the Canadian border.
So one of those House races even borders Canada.
Now, the state also has a key Senate race between Republican there, Mike Rogers, and Democrat Abdul El-Sayed.
Just two weeks ago, Mike Rogers came out with a key ad campaign in which he said, I will fight for manufacturing in this state.
But President Trump's record on manufacturing has not been as great as he would like.
In fact, let's take a look at where things stand there in Michigan.
After Trump had his liberation day last year announcing global tariffs, Michigan has lost 8,300 manufacturing jobs on net.
The state is facing the third largest tariff cost of any state, and that's about 15 billion in tariffs for the auto industry alone.
This is a situation where Republicans are actually very happy with the candidates they have in this state.
They have known how important it is, but the economic effects cannot be ignored anymore, and voters are really catching on.
One Republican national campaign source I have said they think Michigan is the state where tariffs could impact the election the most.
GEOFF BENNETT: And there's another state in the crosshairs of Canadian tariffs, and that's Pennsylvania.
Take us there.
LISA DESJARDINS: Right.
This is fascinating.
There are several important races in the House in Pennsylvania, but there's one in particular I want us to look at that's center stage, and it's because of the tariffs specifically Canada put in place against motorcycles.
This is Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District on the southern border of Pennsylvania, and there in York County sits the Harley-Davidson assembly plant.
Canada has just announced today 50 percent tariffs on American-made motorcycles, most of them like Harley-Davidsons, that on assembly plant in York County.
Harley-Davidson earlier this summer said they were going to try and expand it.
They had had layoffs, but they were recovering.
And, as is obvious, that's not what any business wants is a big freeze before you're expanding.
This is a problem for one member of Congress.
That's Scott Perry, who represents the 10th Congressional District.
He is in a very close race to try and keep his seat.
This does not help him.
He did put out a statement saying that he thinks that these tariffs are disappointing, that they're detrimental, but the fact is, it does make him more vulnerable.
We reached out to Harley-Davidson, and they said just in a sentence they will decline to comment.
GEOFF BENNETT: There's also a potential impact on a Senate race that many saw as a long shot for Democrats, but it's getting fresh attention.
What's up with that?
LISA DESJARDINS: Right.
All politics is local.
We're talking about Kansas.
This is a long shot race for Democrats, but it's getting more within reach when we talk about the U.S.
Senate.
President Trump yesterday put out on TRUTH Social a statement about a jet company in Canada called Bombardier.
He wrote: "No more selling Bombardier in the United States."
Now, that is a Canadian company, it's true, but their U.S.
headquarters are in Wichita, Kansas, where they employ some 1,200 Americans.
That is a problem in the Senate race potentially for Republicans.
There's Roger Marshall, who is the incumbent senator, facing Democratic Pastor Adam Hamilton.
Marshall really shouldn't be vulnerable.
He's a longtime incumbent that's well-known.
However, he is increasingly so.
And he's seeing headlines in newspapers and on TV stations around the state like this one connecting Trump to job losses.
Marshall has put out a statement today saying that he has reached out to Trump and he's trying to fight for jobs.
GEOFF BENNETT: And big picture, what is the overall effect of President Trump's trade policies on these key midterm races?
LISA DESJARDINS: We focused on a few, but let's look at the states in play, Republican seats in the Senate.
There's a number of them.
You see Alaska and Maine, big-time trading with Canada.
Same with Texas.
There's also issues for farmers over his tariff policies with beef.
Overall, what we're seeing right now is the winds continue to blow in Democratic directions, and some Republicans think Trump is helping them right now with tariff policy.
GEOFF BENNETT: Lisa Desjardins, thanks, as always, for that reporting.
LISA DESJARDINS: You're welcome.
Canadian tariffs on U.S. take effect, marking turning point
Video has Closed Captions
Canadian tariffs on U.S. goods take effect, marking turning point in relations (2m 29s)
Fighter pilot reflects on order to stop Flight 93 on 9/11
Video has Closed Captions
Fighter pilot reflects on order to sacrifice herself to stop Flight 93 on 9/11 (8m 10s)
How U.S.-Canada trade dispute is impacting both economies
Video has Closed Captions
How the U.S.-Canada trade dispute is impacting the economy on both sides of the border (6m 28s)
Lonnie Bunch on political pressure facing the Smithsonian
Video has Closed Captions
Lonnie Bunch on his legacy and protecting the Smithsonian from political pressure (10m 53s)
News Wrap: NYC officials aware of toxic air after 9/11
Video has Closed Captions
News Wrap: NYC officials release documents showing city was aware of toxic air after 9/11 (5m 41s)
Southeast Asia endures year of extreme weather amid El Nino
Video has Closed Captions
Southeast Asia endures punishing year of extreme weather amid super El Niño (5m 21s)
Youth sports become big business, putting stress on families
Video has Closed Captions
Youth sports become big business, putting stress on families and leaving some behind (7m 54s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
New Episode- News and Public Affairs

Today's top journalists discuss Washington's current political events and public affairs.

- News and Public Affairs

FRONTLINE is investigative journalism that questions, explains and changes our world.

New Episode
New Episode
New Episode
New Episode
New Episode

New Episode
New Episode
New Episode
New Episode
Support for PBS provided by:
Major corporate funding for the PBS News Hour is provided by BDO, BNSF, Consumer Cellular, American Cruise Lines, and Raymond James. Funding for the PBS NewsHour Weekend is provided by...






