Trump touts tariffs while in Michigan despite rising costs. Even some supporters are worried

Flying into a General Motors rally in Michigan this week, US President Donald Trump declared that “car companies are doing better than ever” because of his spending.

“It's all because of Trump,” he said.

It was a message the Republican president repeated as he toured the new car collection, predicting “it's amazing what the numbers are going to do for General Motors” before autographing a white Corvette commemorating America's 250th anniversary.

He later told a crowd of cheering supporters that “Michigan is thriving.”

That's not exactly true, according to many metrics. The taxes have cost businesses in Michigan and across the country billions of dollars while helping to dampen the economy's continuing to burn — despite Trump's assurances his business base will end it.

Many Americans believe tariffs have driven up prices and the Iran war has pushed up fuel prices, hurting consumer confidence in the economy while keeping Trump's approval ratings low.

WATCH | Trump says he doesn't care about CUSMA:

There are few places where the clash between the president's arrogance and the economic reality of his prices is more likely to collide ahead of the November midterm elections than on the battlefield in Michigan, which holds its primary on Tuesday. Trump won the state in 2016 and again in 2024, after he turned to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020.

During Trump's rally in Milford, northwest of Detroit, the crowd cheered. But even some of his staunchest supporters say tariffs are too high and tariffs have caused short-term economic pain – even as they still support him overall.

Lisa Scherer, a 64-year-old who runs a landscaping company and works as a bus driver and union leader, agreed that high gas prices are “hurting” and “very bad” shopping.

“But I hope, if we can hold our own,” he said, stressing that he still thinks the president is doing a good job.

Michigan and Canada have deep commercial ties

Although the Supreme Court struck down many of the tariffs Trump ordered when he first returned to the White House, his administration has introduced new import tariffs and recently used the Tariff Act of 1930 to accuse Canada of using discriminatory practices and plans to impose a 50 percent tariff on most imports from that country.

Michigan relies on supply chains that are heavily integrated with Canada after decades of policies that encourage lowering bilateral trade barriers. That includes the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement since Trump's first presidency. Trump chose not to renew that trade deal, stalling years of negotiations.

GM said it was “an honor to spend time showing off our vehicles and equipment” to Trump. But automakers have long argued that the tariffs drive up production costs — so much so that the president promised them a waiver on his auto parts tariffs, extending in October what was supposed to be a temporary cut until 2030.

Veteran Michigan pollster Bernie Porn said Trump's sweet words can't hide how his prices are helping to fuel voters' concerns about inflation and affordability.

“When I was listening to him, I was like, 'What planet are you on?'” Porn said.

Porn noted that some Republicans nationally are worried their voters won't be motivated to turn out in November and “I doubt Michigan will be much different.”

“He's like an anchor around Republicans,” Porn said.

Trump's policies don't bother Joe Miskovich, a 57-year-old aerospace business owner from Fenton, about 20 miles north of Milford, Mich.

People need to realize, Miskovich said, that “yes, granted, there may be a slight price increase. But the long-term effect will be absolutely positive for the nation.”

Trump is helping to decide next week's primaries

As he has done in key midterm races across the country, Trump has used his endorsements to help ensure which candidates he deems most credible or helpful to his process. On Tuesday, in the Michigan Republican gubernatorial primary, Trump endorsed congressman John James over his rival Perry Johnson.

Also speaking was Rep. Mike Rogers, who is running for Senate again after narrowly losing to Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin two years ago.

More national attention is focused on the state Senate primary, which will determine whether Rogers will face Rep. Haley Stevens or continuing favorite Abdul El-Sayed.

But Rogers said Michigan needs a senator who promotes Trump's agenda, not someone who works to block it.

“This is the time we're going to stand up and take Michigan off its knees,” he said at a Trump rally.

Scherer, who once ran a landscaping company, drove nearly five hours from his home in Columbus, Ohio, to see Trump's speech. However, he is concerned that the president has left behind other supporters like him who helped bring him back to the White House.

“I'm brutally honest, like Trump, right? You forgot about people who earn a fixed income,” said Scherer, who lives on Social Security benefits of $1,100 a month in the US. “But I look at it like, I think, no pain, no gain.”

Automakers plan to increase domestic production – eventually

Michigan Republican House Speaker Matt Hall praised the tariffs at Trump's rally, while noting that the president last year announced a new military air campaign that secured the future of the Selfridge Air National Guard Base.

“This is what putting Michigan first looks like,” he said.

Some car companies have promised to increase US production, however those benefits have not yet been felt. GM announced in June 2025 that it plans to invest four billion dollars to move car production from Mexico to the US starting next year.

Ford and Stellantis, which own Chrysler, have a similar timeline for expanding domestic operations.

Toyota also said it would invest $3.6 billion and move production of its Tacoma pickup truck from Mexico to Texas, but that would take about four years.

Meanwhile, Michigan has seen only a slight increase in job creation in the auto industry during Trump's second term, and jobs related to manufacturing auto parts fell by nearly 4,000 statewide through June compared to the same month last year.

Michigan has lost 8,300 manufacturing jobs since Trump announced his “Independence Day” tariffs in April of last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Among some of Trump's base, economic concerns show

Outside, the rally was a favorite. When Trump talked about meeting a “nice” waitress in Las Vegas during the 2024 campaign, a man in the audience roared, “She's nice!”

Later, the crowd started chanting “10 more years!” when Trump talked about needing to leave office after January 2029.

“Trump, like No. 1. You know, he's the best,” said Rose Stroud, 75, who attended the rally from Commerce, Michigan. “He thinks about people, about what they need.”

Some attendees stressed that the president should get the benefit of the doubt – as concerns about kitchen table issues come first.

“There's always a method to the madness, and people sometimes don't understand or get it,” said Roy Parks, 49, a self-employed craftsman, photographer and videographer from Milford.

“But there's always a reason for him to do things a certain way, and it might not make sense at first, but after six, 12 months, it all comes together.”

He said the same goes for taxes: “You may not like it at first, but it's a little short-term, short-term pain, but long-term beauty. It works out in the end. It's much better.”

“If you take the Band-Aid off too soon, it hurts,” Parks added. “But, after a few minutes, there is no pain. You have to go through a little pain in the beginning to get to the long-term beauty.”