US trade chief defends tariffs as Democrats say Trump ‘in denial’ over price hikes

Donald Trump’s chief trade official denied the president’s sweeping tariffs have increased prices for US families, as lawmakers challenged him over cost-of-living concerns across much of the country.

US inflation surged to a three-year high earlier this year. During a heated exchange before US senators on Wednesday, however, US trade representative Jamieson Greer appeared to claim Trump’s controversial economic agenda had not driven prices higher.

Asked by the Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren if the tariffs had increased prices for American families, Greersaid: “No.”

“Core inflation fell to 2.6% year on year, much better than in January 2025,” Greer said.

Core inflation excludes food and energy. Overall inflation is slightly higher than it was when Joe Biden left office.

Warren said an estimate produced by Democrats and based on the non-partisan congressional budget office and the treasury department’s own numbers, showed families were paying an average of $1,700 more in tariff costs since Trump’s return to office.

It comes at a critical time for Trump’s tariffs policy, which suffered a damaging blow in February when the US supreme court ruled that many of those tariffs were illegal.

The US replaced those tariffs with a 10% tariff regime on much of the world, but this is due to expire on Friday – and Trump officials, including Greer, have indicated they will replace it with a new wave of duties on imports from overseas.

During Greer’s appearance before the Senate finance committee on Wednesday, Senator Raphael Warnock said Trump had “made life more expensive for everybody” before the US-Israel war on Iran sent “energy prices through the roof”.

“Despite this mountain of evidence, you and the president still seem to be in denial that tariffs have raised prices,” Warnock told Greer, “a fact that study after study confirms, and is just basic common sense – everybody sees it, we’re feeling it.”

Warnock asked if Greer had “ever produced any rigorous peer-evaluated study refuting the fact that the tariffs have contributed to inflation, or is your rebuttal to these conclusion just based on vibes, people’s feelings, politics … ?”

Greer replied: “Well, no, we don’t do vibes, senator.”

Greer began to talk about inflation and the price of eggs over the past month before Warnock pulled him up to answer his question. When Greer began talking about the price of eggs, butter and smartphones, Warnock interjected: “That’s not my question.”

“The point is that tariffs contributed to inflation,” Warnock said. “Prices are higher than when the president came into office, and tariffs made it worse.”