Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer warned that President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Mexico would affect the price of Corona beer, holding up a can of the Mexican export for illustrative effect at a Sunday press conference in Manhattan.
“It’s going to affect beer, OK? Most of it — Corona here — comes from Mexico,” Schumer told reporters as he showed them the can — and some avocados — during a presser at his office. “It’s going to affect your guac, because what is guacamole made of? Avocados. Both from Mexico.”
Related: Trump Announces Pause on Mexico Tariffs After Country Pledges to Send 10,000 Troops to Border
Schumer made the remarks a day before Trump announced that he was pausing a proposed 25% tariff on Mexican goods on account of a pledge from Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to send 10,000 troops to the border. Schumer made the point in connection with Feb. 9 Super Bowl parties, which he said would become more expensive due to the tariffs. He also said they would increase costs for the average American family by an average of $1,200 annually, citing a study by the nonpartisan Budget Lab at Yale University.
Democratic New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand made the same point about avocados in a press conference of her own on Sunday. “When you are having your Super Bowl celebration, your guacamole’s going up — I’ll promise you that,” Gillibrand said. “Because those avocados get grown all over the place, including Mexico.”
In a Monday interview with Semafor, Schumer declined to acknowledge Trump’s purported victory over Mexico, saying instead that it was a mistake to agitate U.S. neighbors. “I didn’t know he’d screw up so soon,” Schumer said. He added, “We’re not going to fall for the Bannon ‘flood the zone,'” referencing Steve Bannon’s advice that Trump overwhelm Democrats with a wide range of executive orders and actions.
You can watch Schumer’s Sunday press conference above.
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