Rust Belt caller feels ‘heard’ after Trump announces sweeping tariffs

A guest caller on journalist Mark Halperin’s Wednesday evening show praised President Donald Trump’s tariffs and said he feels “heard.”

Trump announced a national emergency on Wednesday and imposed a series of reciprocal tariffs, set at roughly half the rates that other nations charge on U.S. imports. The White House has dubbed this initiative “Liberation Day.” During a livestream of “2WAY TONIGHT,” a guest named Robert said the move is less about the immediate economic implications and more about feeling recognized after years of neglect.

“And I think that what everybody is forgetting is the fact that President Trump is speaking to his base in every swing state from where we are in Pennsylvania to Wisconsin to Michigan when the auto worker was there and said, ‘You know, I have seen over my lifetime, every factory, every plant, every mill closed down to the extent whereby he’s making all sorts of noise,” Robert told Halperin. “It was complete music to our ears out here because we live in this wasteland, and we understand global markets.”

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The guest said that he’s seeking leaders who promise to prioritize American jobs and industries.

“I also voted for Ronald Reagan and all of that other stuff. But you know, at some point, somebody needs to speak up for us. And this is why we voted for Donald Trump. Full stop. How the tariffs work out or anything like that, and whether or not any of these jobs will ever come back, almost is performative for us,” Robert added. “At minimum, somebody’s heard us out here from the decades, endless decades of hurt that we felt out here economically.”

Automotive and steel union members also declared their support for Trump’s tariffs on foreign imports. James Benson Jr., a Michigan auto worker, and Matt Novak, a steelworker from Indiana, both said they’re optimistic about the impact these tariffs could have on their respective industries.

Trump said that the new tariffs on all imported vehicles and automobile parts are designed to shield the auto industry, which he says has suffered due to excessive imports. The White House added that this action was necessary to counter unfair trade practices and to strengthen the U.S. automobile sector.

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