Cortez Masto Calls Out Trump Coffee Tariffs that are Raising Prices for Nevadans

FTP for TV stations of her remarks is available here.

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) blasted President Trump's tariffs on coffee, which are jacking up prices for American roasters and consumers across the country. Cortez Masto took to the Senate floor to ask unanimous consent to pass her bipartisan No Coffee Tax Act that she wrote with Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), but a Republican senator objected.

Coffee production is not an industry the U.S. can reasonably onshore, and the U.S. is the largest importer of coffee in the world. Brazil, the top source for U.S. coffee imports, has faced a 50% tariff under the Trump administration's tariff policy, contributing to a surge in prices. U.S. retail coffee prices increased by nearly 21% in August compared to the same month last year. The No Coffee Tax Act will bring coffee tariffs back to the level they were the day before Trump took office. That level was 0% on everything other than coffee substitutes containing coffee.

Read the full bill here. Companion legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressmen Don Bacon (R-Neb.-02) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.-17).

Below are her remarks as prepared for delivery:

Mr. President, President Trump promised Americans during his campaign that if he was re-elected, he would lower costs "on day one." Americans trusted him to do so.

And yet, all President Trump has done, from day one of his presidency until now, has been to raise costs for our families and our businesses.

One of the most outrageous examples of this is with his erratic, blanket tariffs that he's imposed on our allies and trading partners.

Because let's be clear: tariffs are taxes.

That's what the American people are seeing every day. And many of them are seeing it first thing in the morning when they buy their cup of coffee.

This is an unacceptable burden to be putting on the American people. And the tools this administration is using to do so are clearly unconstitutional.

The good news is, Congress has the authority to do something about it. And there's bipartisan, bicameral agreement that we not only can act, but must.

That's why I'm here today to pass the bill I wrote with Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky. It's called the No Coffee Tax Act.

This is a very simple bill that would roll back President Trump's tax on our coffee.

Let me explain why this is important.

The United States is the largest importer of coffee in the world. Why? Because even though we all love our morning coffee, the United States does not have the natural climate or growing conditions needed to produce the amounts of coffee Americans consume every day. 99% of coffee in this country comes from another country.

Until President Trump took office, Americans had never paid broad tariffs on coffee imports.

But now, this president has decided to recklessly impose tariffs on our top sources for coffee: Brazil at 50%, and other main coffee producers like Vietnam, Indonesia, Colombia, and Ethiopia are being tariffed at outrageous rates.

I don't need to tell you what that's meant for Americans, because we've all felt it every single day! I'm hearing from coffee roasters and wholesalers in Nevada who have been forced to raise their prices to keep up with these tariffs.

That's filtering down to local coffee shops - our small businesses - that are in turn having to raise their prices on consumers. The price of a cup of coffee has skyrocketed nearly 40% since last year. 40%.

This is happening all over the country. And it's not just businesses where coffee is their main product - restaurants that serve breakfast are being impacted, too.

This is what these irresponsible tariffs have done to Americans. Because, as I've said, tariffs are taxes.

Now, I know that responsible, targeted tariffs on our adversaries can be good for American workers and our national security. There's a smart way to do this. But taxing our coffee and raising prices for Americans isn't it.

The bipartisan, bicameral bill Senator Paul and I introduced would bring coffee tariffs back to the level they were at before President Trump took office - 0%.

The Senate has already passed legislation, supported by both Democrats and Republicans, to repeal President Trump's tariffs on Canada and Brazil, as well as his global tariffs on the rest of our trading partners.

The No Coffee Tax Act is equally important to the American people.

Prices are already too high in this country. Getting rid of this unnecessary coffee tax will make Americans' lives - and their mornings - just a little easier.

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