Fox Business correspondent Charlie Gasparino expressed concern Tuesday over President Donald Trump’s decision to impose new tariffs on Canadian imports, arguing that while he may sympathize with the president’s broader views on Canada, he believes the timing could create unnecessary economic uncertainty.
The discussion unfolded during Fox Business’ Big Money Show, where host Dagan McDowell outlined the administration’s latest trade action.
McDowell said President Trump is imposing an additional 50% tariff on roughly $20 billion worth of Canadian imports. According to her, the affected goods include products ranging from wine and hockey sticks to cement.
She described the move as part of a broader strategy involving Canada and suggested it could serve as a pressure tactic related to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
McDowell also noted that separate 10% baseline tariffs implemented by Trump after the Supreme Court struck down tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) are scheduled to expire on July 24. She said replacement tariffs are also expected to be announced.
Fox Business host Taylor Riggs then weighed in, pointing to estimates she had recently reviewed regarding the potential economic effects of the increased tariffs.
Riggs explained that raising tariffs on Canadian goods, excluding energy products, to 50% would increase the effective tariff rate by roughly three to three-and-a-half percentage points, bringing the total baseline tariff to approximately 13.5%.
She also cited estimates suggesting that wholesale prices would likely absorb the full impact of the tariffs, while consumers would experience only a portion of the increase.
According to Riggs, under a full pass-through scenario, the tariffs could add about half a percentage point to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Under what she described as a more realistic estimate, consumer prices would increase by approximately 0.15 to 0.35 percentage points.
Riggs said those projected increases did not strike her as especially significant.
She also pointed out that core goods prices had been deflationary over the previous two months, noting that prices had been falling during that period.
While acknowledging that economists continue to debate whether tariffs contribute to inflation, Riggs argued that even under a scenario in which costs are fully passed along, the projected impact appears relatively limited.
Still, she said consumers may not welcome any indication that prices could increase.
Gasparino briefly lightened the conversation by joking that he had already ordered his hockey sticks before asking what products the United States imports from Canada.
As the discussion continued, however, the veteran business journalist became more serious about the broader economic implications.
Gasparino criticized Canada, saying he believes the country has become too socialist and too woke. He also argued that Canada takes for granted the protection the United States provides.
Despite those criticisms, Gasparino said his personal feelings toward Canada differ from his concerns about economic policy.
He explained that while he emotionally wants to support Trump’s approach toward Canada, he remains uneasy about relying on tariffs at a time when financial markets are already focused on broader economic issues.
Gasparino concluded by warning that the current economic environment is not the right time for additional uncertainty, saying, “This is not a time to be screwing around here.”
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