Pelosi: "Trump is Tanking our Economy in a Self-Inflicted Disaster."
San Francisco – Today, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi hosted a Cost of Living Week of Action press conference at Arcadio’s Produce in the heart of The SF Market, bringing together San Francisco small business owners and community leaders to discuss how President Trump’s senseless tariffs and reckless economic policies are hurting small business owners and their employees in San Francisco.
The press conference featured Laurie Poston, Board Member of the San Francisco Market; Lauren Crabbe, Owner of Andytown Coffee Roasters; Jeanne Boes, General Manager of the San Francisco Flower Market; Juana Posadas and Manuel Orozco, General Managers of Arcadio’s Produce; Kevin Teng, Owner of SarangHello; and Sara Razavi, CEO of Working Solutions Community Development Financial Institution.
Watch the full press conference here. View photos from today's event here.
Read Speaker Emerita Pelosi's remarks as delivered below:
Speaker Emerita Pelosi. Good morning, everyone. Thank you to Laurie Poston for your introduction and to everyone at Arcadio’s Produce for hosting us today.
This is a remarkable place. I hope you had a chance to see the force of it all. Small businesses like Arcadio are the lifeblood of the American economy. With their great optimism, entrepreneurial wisdom, and courage.
It is a privilege to join so many small business owners and community leaders during this Cost of Living Week in America. All over the country, House Democrats are having events with the community about bringing down the cost-of-living.
That was something that the President promised in the campaign. But the exact opposite is happening now. So, this Cost of Living Week is part of a drumbeat of the national opposition to Trump's reckless economic policies.
Now, I've always said, because the Democratic Party for a long time has been so enthusiastic about small business, we see it as the ultimate job creator, wealth creator for our country.
And those who engage in small business are the most optimistic. What is more optimistic than starting a small business? Maybe getting married, but maybe you have some more confidence there about what might happen.
So, thank you for your courage, your optimism. Because that, again, is the lifeblood of our economy. And we look forward to hearing your stories.
The Trump Administration's ineptitude is tanking our economy in a self-inflicted disaster that leaves hardworking Americans bearing the brunt of the pain. Make no mistake: President Trump’s senseless tariffs are driving prices higher, draining retirement savings, look at 401(k)s, and pushing us to the brink of recession.
Here in San Francisco, Trump's economic policies are hurting small business owners and their employees by instilling fear and uncertainty. But business has enough uncertainty as it is when you go forth. You don't need civic uncertainty of this magnitude.
Across the country, working families could see their costs go up as much as $4,600 a year. The largest tax hike on American families in history.
I'm fond of certain quotes from Ronald Reagan. He made the best speech of anyone on immigration. I recommend you see that. It was the last speech he made as President of the United States.
He says, ‘I want to communicate a message to a country I love.’ And he talks about the Statue of Liberty and immigration. When I quote that to the Republicans, they don't applaud.
But nonetheless, now I have to quote this to them. In 1988, President Reagan said ‘America's most recent experiment with protectionism was a disaster for working men and women of this country. When Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff in 1980…’
He goes back then to when Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff in 1930. ‘We were told that it would protect America from foreign competition and save jobs in this country. The actual result was the Great Depression.’
He continued, ‘We should beware of the demagogues.’ This is Reagan talking in 1988. ‘We should beware of the demagogues who are ready to declare a trade war against our friends, weakening our economy, our national security and the entire free world while cynically waving the American flag.’ Ronald Reagan.
He then goes back to the 1930s when that was Smoot-Hawley, he said when he made his first vote for president of the United States. As a young person, he voted for Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who overturned Smoot-Hawley. Ronald Reagan's words were true then in 1988. And they are true now.
With the Trump tariffs fully in effect – and again, all the uncertainty – now you see it, now you don’t. Well maybe so, maybe not. San Franciscans will pay more for groceries, shoes and clothing, household necessities, auto parts, recreational items, you name it.
While Trump doesn't care about the pain of the American people, he should have recognized the fear that he is causing, and that House Democrats are gathering across the country to stand united against his reckless economic policy.
So, again, really, that's what we're doing across the country this week. Some of you were with us when we had the Hands Off Our Medicaid, Hands Off Our Social Security, and now we're talking about our economy writ large.
The best way to talk about that, though, is to hear from our small business folks. It's now my pleasure to introduce Lauren Crabbe, founder and owner of an incredible small business in San Francisco in Andytown Coffee Roasters. Thank you for being with us and I yield the floor to you.
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