President Donald Trump is threatening to back election challengers against the six House Republicans who joined Democrats in voting to reverse his tariffs on Canada.
The president sent out an ominous warning to GOP lawmakers in the House and Senate just before his agenda suffered a blow on Capitol Hill Wednesday evening.
‘Any Republican, in the House or the Senate, that votes against TARIFFS will seriously suffer the consequences come Election time, and that includes Primaries!’ Trump posted on Truth Social.
He argued that the trade deficit was reduced significantly while U.S. financial markets hit significant high points because of his tariff policies.
‘In addition, TARIFFS have given us Great National Security because the mere mention of the word has Countries agreeing to our strongest wishes,’ Trump continued.
‘TARIFFS have given us Economic and National Security, and no Republican should be responsible for destroying this privilege.’
Democrats successfully got a vote on a measure to reverse Trump’s national emergency at the northern border using a mechanism for forcing votes over the objections of House majority leadership called a privileged resolution.
The six Republicans who voted in favor of the measure are Reps. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., Don Bacon, R-Neb., Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.
One Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, voted with the majority of Republicans on the matter. It passed 219-211.
It’s not clear how much impact Trump’s threat will have, however.
Both Newhouse and Bacon are not running for re-election in the 2026 midterms, and Trump is already endorsing a primary challenger against Massie.
Kiley, whose district was severely impacted by California Democrats’ new congressional map, has not yet said whether he will run for re-election or where he will do it.
Fitzpatrick and Hurd are both well-liked incumbents in their districts, which are top targets for Democrats come November.
Trump signed an executive order in February 2025, enacting an additional 25% tariff on most goods from Canada and Mexico. Energy from Canada was subject to an additional 15% tariff.
At the time, the White House said it was punishment for those countries’ unwillingness to do more to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs into the U.S.
Opponents of Trump’s tariff strategy have criticized his moves against Canada in particular, arguing it was unjustly harming one of the closest allies of the U.S. and trading partners to the detriment of Americans themselves.
But Republicans who voted against the legislation pointed out that Trump said the fentanyl crisis was the reason for issuing the emergency in the first place, and said the drug was still killing Americans.
The legislation now heads to the Senate, where Republicans have voted to rebuke Trump’s tariff strategy in the past despite similar warnings from the president.
