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ed markey
Relief From Trump Tariff Pain Coming for Corporations—But Not Consumers Harmed by High Prices
"Big businesses that get refunds need to get the money back to their customers; ‘everyday low prices’ is not the way to do it," said US Sen. Ed Markey.
Apr 20, 2026
The Trump administration on Monday launched a portal designed to facilitate refunds on around $166 billion taken in from tariffs that the US Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional earlier this year.
But only businesses that directly paid President Donald Trump's sweeping import taxes are eligible for relief—not the millions of Americans who paid higher prices as a result of the illegal tariffs. As The New York Times observed, "The extent to which consumers realize any gain hinges on whether businesses share the proceeds, something that few have publicly committed to do."
US Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), the top Democrat on the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, said in a statement Monday that big corporations that passed tariff costs onto consumers are set to "benefit the most" from the Trump administration's refund system, given that they are better-equipped to deal with the complicated application process and potential issues with the newly created portal.
Markey faulted the administration for its "shortsighted decision to not issue automatic refunds," instead choosing a convoluted application system that's expected to face issues due to massive demand. The Associated Press noted that "companies must submit declarations listing the goods on which they collectively put billions of dollars toward the import taxes the court subsequently struck down."
"If [Customs and Border Protection] approves a claim, it will take 60 to 90 days for a refund to be issued," the outlet observed. "The government expects to process refunds in phases, however, focusing first on more recent tariff payments. Any number of technical factors and procedural issues could delay an importer’s application, so any reimbursements businesses plan to make to customers likely would trickle down slowly."
"Big businesses must help ease the ongoing affordability crisis by passing on any refund savings they receive to customers and small businesses."
Democrats on the congressional Joint Economic Committee (JEC) estimated that, prior to the US Supreme Court's ruling in February, Trump's tariffs had cost US families over $1,700 each. Overall, American consumers paid more than $231 billion in tariff costs from February 2025 to January 2026, according to the JEC.
Markey said Monday that “American small businesses and families deserve to get their money back with interest."
"Big businesses that get refunds need to get the money back to their customers; ‘everyday low prices’ is not the way to do it," the senator said. "There must be no further delay or complicated hoops to jump through. CBP must ensure quick and easy refunds without further documentation. Big businesses must help ease the ongoing affordability crisis by passing on any refund savings they receive to customers and small businesses who paid them rather than waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”
Unlikely to receive relief from the Trump administration, some consumers harmed by tariffs are taking legal action against corporations that jacked up prices.
The American Prospect reported Monday that "while companies are pursuing tariff refunds and the Trump administration is levying new global tariffs to replace what was struck down, some consumers are filing their own lawsuits seeking relief for higher prices paid because of tariffs."
"Lawsuits have been filed against at least five corporations that plaintiffs say raised prices to pay for tariffs—costs set to be refunded to companies," the Prospect noted. "The proposed class action suits target Costco, EssilorLuxottica (the maker of Ray-Ban sunglasses), activewear company Fabletics, UPS, and FedEx."
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Markey Demands Answers From Trump Agency on Cost of Illegal War on Iran
"The economic havoc wreaked by this war has damaged virtually every sector imaginable, and we need the BLS to factor in the full implications of what the war will mean for the American economy," the senator wrote.
Apr 17, 2026
As President Donald Trump's war in Iran fuels inflation across the US economy, Sen. Ed Markey wrote to the acting head of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics to demand updated consumer price data that accounts for these costs.
Markey (Mass.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, already wrote the acting commissioner of BLS, William Wiatrowski, once on March 9, to demand price updates back when the war was just over a week old. He said he received no response.
In a follow-up letter sent Friday, Markey said that in the intervening weeks, "the impact of the crisis has deepened considerably," with repeated blockages to the critical Strait of Hormuz disrupting the global trade of oil and other commodities.
Even with the strait reopened amid a tentative 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, Iran has indicated it will not hesitate to close the waterway again if that agreement—which is already fraying after less than 24 hours—falls apart.
"The economic havoc wreaked by this war has damaged virtually every sector imaginable, and we need the BLS to factor in the full implications of what the war will mean for the American economy," Markey wrote.
He pointed out that since his last letter, average gas prices in the US had surpassed $4.00 per gallon, a 40% increase since the US and Israel launched the first attacks against Iran on February 28.
Citing data from the US Energy Information Administration, Markey wrote that "small businesses and individual car owners are struggling with the prospect of more than $540 per vehicle in added annual gas costs."
Beyond gas, he pointed to other steep price hikes: Fertilizer prices have shot up 30% since the war began, costs he warned would be pushed to consumers at grocery stores in the coming months. Where a month ago, grocery bills were predicted to rise 3% this year, the latest report from the Department of Agriculture now projects a more than 6% increase.
This is on top of rising transport costs due to higher jet fuel and diesel prices, which have led airlines to jack up baggage costs and shipping companies like UPS, Amazon, and FedEx to raise delivery fees.
"Increased transportation costs affect virtually every facet of the supply chains our economy relies on," Markey said. "And yet, we have yet to hear any concrete plan from the administration regarding an end to the conflict, a solution to alleviate these costs, or any attempt at providing relief for Americans.”
In recent days, Trump and his underlings have brushed aside concerns about sharp price hikes due to the war.
At an economic event in Las Vegas on Thursday, Trump described them as "fake inflation because of the fuel, the energy prices." He's previously suggested that price hikes from the war "didn’t matter" to him because they're "short-term" and that Americans concerned about their pocketbooks should care more about the threat of Iran.
Trump's approval rating on the economy hit its lowest point ever recorded this week, with just 40% approving of his handling of the economy compared to 59% disapproving in a Navigator Research poll published Thursday. In that same poll, more than two-thirds of Americans (68%) said the economy was in either "poor" or "not so good" shape.
When asked about these dismal polling numbers by a reporter on Thursday, Trump's top economic adviser, Scott Bessent, shrugged it off, saying that "in their heart of hearts," Americans "feel good" about the economy, and that he was "not sure what they're telling the survey people."
"Understandably, Americans remain skeptical that President Trump has a plan of any kind," Markey said. "They cannot afford to fly blind, as Trump apparently elects to."
The senator said: "Facing thousands of dollars in higher prices for gasoline, groceries, and utilities—not to mention the hundreds of billions of their taxpayer money that Trump is requesting to pay for the war itself—American families and small businesses must budget and plan for the future. BLS must put forward consumer price projections that reflect the disastrous consequences of Trump’s illegal war.”
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In 47-52 Vote, Senate GOP Blocks Another Iran War Powers Resolution
"Trump’s war of choice in Iran is a moral tragedy and economic disaster playing out before our eyes. It is only making the United States and the world less safe," said Sen. Ed Markey.
Apr 15, 2026
Senate Republicans on Wednesday once again narrowly stymied a Democrat-led resolution aimed at reining in President Donald Trump's power to wage war against Iran.
Although the war launched by the US and Israel in late February has killed more than 1,700 civilians and sparked a global fuel crisis that has sent prices skyrocketing, that was not enough for 52 Republican senators—every one except libertarian Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.)—who voted to back the president even as the war further erodes his approval rating.
The Democratic caucus was similarly unified, with every member voting for the war powers resolution except the pro-Israel hawk Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.).
It was the fourth war powers resolution to fail in the Senate since Trump launched the war on February 28, The last measure in late March fell short by a nearly identical margin.
Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) called Democrats' continued attempts to check Trump's war powers "exhausting" in comments to reporters on Tuesday. "Doing a war powers resolution just undermines the president. I don’t believe [the Democrats] would do that if the president had a ‘D’ behind his name.”
After more than two weeks of delay, a similar bill will be brought to the floor in the House of Representatives on Thursday. Its sponsor, Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said it has a good chance of passing.
But without a similar bill passing the Senate, it would remain a purely symbolic gesture, with no ability to limit Trump's power as he sends thousands more troops to the region immediately after saying the war was "close to over."
"Trump’s war of choice in Iran is a moral tragedy and economic disaster playing out before our eyes. It is only making the United States and the world less safe," said Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) after voting for the war powers resolution. “We have seen thousands of civilian deaths in Iran and Lebanon. More than 100 Iranian schoolgirls were killed by American weapons, and 13 American servicemembers were killed, and hundreds have been injured."
He added, "This dangerous, unnecessary, and expensive war has cost American taxpayers around $50 billion so far, with the Trump administration seeking hundreds of billions of dollars more as part of a $1.5 trillion military budget."
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), an Army National Guard veteran who sponsored the blocked resolution, suggested in her remarks before the vote that Republicans who opposed the resolution would be putting "Trump’s ego first" ahead of American interests and enabling more "chaos."
The two-week ceasefire agreement is set to expire on April 21. A week later, the war will hit the 60-day mark, after which troops must be withdrawn unless their deployment is approved by Congress, though the White House can request a 30-day extension by citing "national security" concerns.
According to Politico, some Republicans—even those who voted against the war powers resolution on Wednesday—have indicated that the 60-day mark may be a turning point for them.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who is retiring after the next election, said that the administration "has got to start answering questions" about the war's trajectory, especially as it requests tens of billions of dollars in emergency funding.
Duckworth, on the other hand, said she has seen more than enough.
"After one half-assed day of so-called 'negotiations,' he’s whipsawed to his next idea: a dangerous, complex, partial military blockade of the Strait of Hormuz—once again launching a risky new front in this war at our service members’ expense… with no justification, explanation, or even ‘concept of a plan’ of how to get to an end-state," she said.
She added, "As our troops continue to sacrifice whatever is asked of them, we senators need to do the absolute minimum required of us."
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