[By Guancha Observer Network, Liu Chenghui]

"They don't need it, they're making a fortune" – when Emily Ley heard President Trump describe small businesses this way, she was so angry that she wanted to "throw stones at him."

Emily Ley is a small business owner from Florida who had previously supported Trump. Her company, "Simplified," mainly sells high-end paper office supplies and heavily relies on Chinese imports to maintain profitability.

However, the tariffs have wiped out the meager profits, forcing her to consider raising prices, laying off employees, or even shutting down the business.

Recently, she became one of those who jointly sued Trump.

The Washington Post published an in-depth article on May 18 about Ley's experience, revealing the real survival challenges faced by ordinary American families and numerous small businesses under the shadow of Trump's tariffs.

"One moment I was talking about how to make beef stew, and the next we were discussing international trade wars." After spending a whole day on social media promoting her company's new recipe book, Ley collapsed onto the sofa, complaining about the threat posed by tariffs to her business operations.

Her company has only nine employees, and the only way to achieve profit is to produce products in China.

When the White House escalated its trade war with China in March, Ley realized that her company would face pressure. She posted online to explain the situation, hoping her followers would understand as well.

"I can no longer remain silent," she said. "Tariffs are killing businesses."

Emily Ley, The Washington Post

Ley noticed that the comments on her social media accounts had shifted from family dinners to trade policies. Some praised her honesty, while others urged her to switch to American-made products.

In fact, Ley initially planned to purchase American products.

Let us rewind to 2011, when Ley first embarked on her entrepreneurial journey. She wanted to use her design skills to launch a planner that included simple schedules and to-do lists.

Ley hadn't ignored the possibility of using domestically manufactured American products. She had reached out to U.S. manufacturers to seek cost-effective production solutions but found that profitability was impossible no matter what she did.

Driven to desperation, she found a solution in China. She started emailing Chinese factories late into the night.

In 2012, she finally connected with a Chinese manufacturer willing to give her a chance. "Everything took off from there," she said.

Trump's return dealt a severe blow to her business operations.

The production cost of "Simplified's" flagship product in China is about $12 per unit, including many components unavailable in the U.S. This year, Trump's tariffs have increased the cost per unit by $18.

This has severely squeezed Ley's profits and increased operational costs for her business. "Simplified" has been forced to sell each unit for $54, and any further price increase would make it uncompetitive.

"Simplified" also considered sourcing products from countries other than China, engaging with potential partners from India, Turkey, and Southeast Asia. However, due to the unpredictable nature of the White House's tariff policies, the company struggles to plan for the long term. The Washington Post analysis states that since Trump assumed office on January 20, his administration officials have announced or revised tariff policies more than 50 times.

Despite the disruption caused by Trump's tariff policies to markets and global supply chains, many large companies and executives remain silent, partly out of fear of angering Trump. Currently, no Fortune 500 company has taken legal action.

In such circumstances, small businesses like "Simplified" have to take the lead in challenging tariffs. Many small businesses rely on cheap foreign labor and have thin profit margins, facing survival threats from tariffs, forcing them to weigh options between raising prices, laying off employees, or even closing their businesses.

Office supplies launched by Ley's company, The Washington Post

It is worth noting that the importance of small businesses to the U.S. economy cannot be overlooked.

According to data from the U.S. Small Business Administration in 2023, small businesses (with fewer than 500 employees) employ more than 61.7 million Americans, accounting for approximately 46.4% of private sector employment and contributing 43.5% of GDP in the United States.

This May, when asked by the media whether he considered reducing tariffs for small businesses, Trump dismissed it disdainfully: "They don't need it; they're making a fortune."

Ley said that after seeing this interview, she wanted to "throw stones at him."

"The president talks about these things as if we don't exist," Ley said. "This affects real families, real American jobs, real American livelihoods, and real American customers, but he refuses to acknowledge it."

Now, Ley's plight has caught the attention of the non-profit organization "New Civil Liberties Alliance" (NCLA). NCLA claims itself to be a non-partisan organization addressing violations of American civil liberties but has previously received funding from the conservative Charles Koch Foundation.

The organization invited Ley to join a lawsuit questioning the legality of tariffs, accusing Trump of overstepping his authority by imposing nearly all import tariffs, thereby usurping Congress's function.

Ley said she had multiple discussions with NCLA regarding the consequences of suing the president.

"I know this might make me a target," she said. Since filing the lawsuit against the president, every post she made on social media has been attacked by bots with pornographic links. Some customers stated they would stop purchasing her products, but new buyers supporting her stance also emerged.

Since "Simplified" filed a lawsuit last month in the Federal Court of Florida, four other small businesses in Florida have joined the lawsuit. Another non-profit organization, "Freedom Justice Center," also filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade on behalf of businesses including fishing gear suppliers, women's motorcycle brands, and liquor companies.

The lawsuits charge Trump as the first president to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and argue that he cannot bypass Congress's power to legislate tariffs by declaring a state of emergency.

Tim Meyer, co-director of the International and Comparative Law Center at Duke University School of Law, said these lawsuits "have a good chance of success," especially if they ultimately reach the Supreme Court.

Ley reflected, saying that what put her in this predicament was not a lack of customers or poor business decisions, but rather the White House's intention to do so.

"It feels like it's not our business that failed, but the government that let us down," Ley said, feeling like a pawn in a game.

"We're like red and black pieces in a cheap checkers game, but this should have been a chess match," she said. "I don't think we're part of any grand strategic plan."

This article is an exclusive piece by the Guancha Observer Network and cannot be reprinted without permission.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7506036320680034857/

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author. Welcome to express your attitude by clicking the 'Like' or 'Dislike' button below.