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When more than a dozen business leaders gathered in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday, many were talking about the closure of their precious local spots.
Cole’s French Dip, a restaurant that has served the downtown area for over 100 years, announced it will permanently close its doors on Monday.
“You cannot make tariffs the sole reason and the sole reason,” said Nella McOsker, president and CEO of Central City Assn. In Los Angeles.
McOsker was one of several participants in the roundtable hosted by California Atty. General Rob Bonta discusses the impact of tariffs on industry throughout the state.
If California is a country, its economy would be the fourth largest in the world. The state is the country’s largest importer and the second largest exporter.
“Because we have such an oversized economy, the impact of tariffs is also characterized by us,” Bonta said.
Speaking to reporters after the discussion, Bonta said the photographs drawn by the business leader were “devastating.” “The unpredictability and uncertainty that tariffs created” were key elements of the conversation, he said.
Business leaders “cannot trade to have long-term budgets, investments, expansions or capital expenditures,” he added.
One of the people who voiced their frustration was Jason Hodge, a commissioner at the Port of Huneme, who described the ripple effects of the Trump administration’s trade policy as “terrifying.”
“Uncertainty is what kills us all more than anything,” Hodge said. “We’re watching [it] It prevents the need to outsource local jobs, not just trucking, but also local jobs. When there is so much uncertainty in the market, they are not trying to invest in the facility right now, so we look with our delivery customers and partners. ”
California filed a lawsuit in April challenging President Trump’s executive body to enact international tariffs without Congressional support. The lawsuit marked the first challenge from any nation to Trump’s trade policy.
“We will continue to fight for California businesses, our business community, our small businesses, our devastating impacts and uncertainties, and large businesses that are better than the unpredictability of these tariffs,” Bonta told reporters.
Many local leaders also said they have had negative consequences for their businesses and industry as well, like the recent migrant and customs enforcement raids in Los Angeles and surrounding areas.
The Carlos singer, policy director at the LA Regional Chamber of Commerce, described the current economic and political climate as “a truly intense flux here, both here in DC.”
“The uncertainty about ice enforcement measures, whether it’s global trade volatility, is wild and deeply unsettled at the emotional, community, education, healthcare and certainly business level,” he said. “Now is the time to marshall all we can to make it clear to this administration and others who have heard this isn’t good for business. This isn’t good for America.”
The Trump administration said foreign trade and economic practices have created a “national emergency” due to the trade deficit. President Trump has argued that tariff imposition will “strengthen the US’ international economic status” and protect American workers.
Bonta said business leaders should be able to rely on the federal government for assistance.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “But unfortunately, that’s what we expect from this federal government.”
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