President Trump's trade agenda threatens to divide Republicans, two prominent conservatives said in an interview with the Washington Examiner's weekly podcast.
Matt Schlapp, and his wife, Mercedes Schlapp, organizers of the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, told "Examining Politics" that trade is the one issue they see as having the potential to drive a wedge between the populist wing of the Republican Party, energized by Trump, and traditional conservatives who hail from the base of the GOP established by President Ronald Reagan.
"There is a bit of a concern on the trade issue," Mercedes Schlapp said. "That's one of the issues that conservatives are — I don't necessarily see them on necessarily the same page when President Trump talks about tariffs, or this protectionist type of mentality. I think that does raise a bit of a red flag when it comes to conservatives."
"Let me push back on that," Matt Schlapp said. "You're right, that in each one of these topic areas, Donald Trump could take it to a place where there would be division."
He added: "When it comes to trade, he's actually talking about making it easier to do business in this country; big tax cuts, regulatory rollback. Yes, he brings up tariffs but he hasn't done anything in terms of tariffs, which I think would be unpopular with a lot of Republicans. So, I think you're right, Mercy, it could get to a place where there are divisions."
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05.13.2024