Photo: US President Donald Trump (Getty Images) Author: Karina Levitskaya
Republican Senator Ted Cruz has warned of a potential “bloodbath” for his party in the 2026 midterm elections if US President Donald Trump's tariffs negatively impact the US economy.
RBC-Ukraine reports this with reference to the Financial Times.
Cruz also predicted a “terrible” fate for the US economy if a full-scale trade war breaks out or any retaliatory measures against US goods are imposed and remain in place for a long time.
Cruz's comments on his Verdict podcast on Friday were the sharpest warning from a member of the president's party since Trump imposed tariffs that sparked a global market meltdown.
“If Trump's tariffs and any retaliatory measures are sustained for a long time and lead to a recession, especially a severe recession, then 2026 is likely to be a political bloodbath. You're going to be facing a Democratic House and possibly a Democratic Senate,” Cruz said.
The publication writes that Republican lawmakers have begun to worry about the impact of Trump's tariffs on the economy and their party's prospects for maintaining control of both houses of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections.
Their fears were heightened as Americans watched some $5.4 trillion in market capitalization disappear during two days of turmoil on Wall Street.
Republican Chuck Grassley recently introduced legislation in the Senate with a Democrat to restore congressional control over tariff policy. The proposed legislation would repeal new tariffs after 60 days unless Congress approves them, and would provide a mechanism for lawmakers to repeal tariffs at any time.
Support for the bill grew yesterday, April 4, when Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski, Mitch McConnell, Jerry Moran and Thom Tillis signed on as co-sponsors.
The publication notes that the bill is likely more symbolic than practical, but it points to growing divisions within the Republican Party as lawmakers worry about the impact of trade policy on export-dependent voters and their re-election chances.
New tariffs from Trump
Let us recall that this week, US President Donald Trump introduced new customs tariffs on imports of goods from all countries of the world. They range from 10% to 50% depending on the country that imports the products.
In particular, a 10% tariff has been set for Ukraine.
Read more about the consequences these changes may have for the global economy and how other countries are reacting to them in the RBC-Ukraine article.
Note that when Trump introduced new tariffs on imported goods from various countries, he did not even bypass the uninhabited islands where penguins live.
Read urgent and important news about Russia's war against Ukraine on the RBC-Ukraine channel in Telegram.