Gabe Evans is making a habit of staging photo ops at businesses in his district, claiming he’s championing them in Congress. But Evans’ eight votes in favor of Trump’s tariffs, among other priorities of the president, have hurt or disrupted the industries Evans says he’s helping.
For example, in his Aug. 3 newsletter, Evans spotlighted his visit to the Five Rivers Kuner Feedlot in Weld County and later posted a photo of himself with company executives. He commented, “Agriculture remains one of Colorado’s greatest economic engines, and I’ll continue fighting to keep it strong.”
But the U.S. agricultural sector, including feedlots, is being rocked by Trump’s tariff policies that Evans has supported lockstep. For farmers, feedlots, and ranchers, the costs of doing business — including fertilizer, machinery, feed — have been driven up by tariffs and by the uncertainty they’ve brought.
In June, Evans again trumpeted his support for business, this time for manufacturing and construction industries.
“I also participated in the American Cement Association’s Annual Fly-In, where we discussed domestic manufacturing, energy policy, infrastructure investment, and regulatory reform,” wrote Evans in his newsletter. “As a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I will continue working to support American manufacturing, reduce red tape, and ensure the materials needed to build our roads, bridges, homes, and communities are produced right here in the United States.”
There’s wide agreement among economists that Trump’s tariffs have hurt domestic manufacturers. About 100,000 American manufacturing jobs were lost during Trump’s first year of his second term, amid rising costs of construction materials and uncertainty about tariff policy and the economy.
Evans has yet to criticize or vote against legislation supporting Trump’s tariffs — and he’s offered little pushback on them publicly, while praising Trump.
Evans Votes Eight Times In Support of Trump’s Tariffs
Since entering Congress last year, Evans has cast eight votes that can be characterized as supportive of Trump’s tariffs. Most recently, in February, he voted against a symbolic House resolution — which passed with the support of six Republicans — to end the national emergency used to justify imposing tariffs on goods from Canada. In February, he was also on the losing end of a House vote to delay a vote on cancelling Trump’s tariffs. He twice voted to block joint congressional resolutions to terminate Trump’s tariffs, and he voted against an amendment offered by Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) that opposed a GOP effort to prevent the House from, according to Neguse in the congressional record, “taking up-or-down votes on President Trump’s disastrous tariff policies” for about six months. In 2025, Evans voted four times to block Congress from challenging or considering Trump’s tariffs.
Some leaders of the businesses visited by Evans say they oppose higher tariffs.
For example, last year, Evans’ newsletter touted the congressman’s stop at Queso Campesino, a cheese importer in his district.
At the time, the company’s owner, Gabriel Robles, told the Colorado Times Recorder that Trump’s tariffs were hurting his business and making him question whether he’ll support Republicans in the next election. A call to Robles on Tuesday was not returned.
Similarly, in his June 16 newsletter, Evans wrote that he met with the Colorado Association of Home Builders (CAHB) as part of his goal to fight for the “American Dream” of homeownership.
“This week, I met with members of the Colorado Association of Home Builders to discuss ways we can reduce unnecessary red tape, strengthen our workforce, and help make housing and the American Dream more attainable for Colorado families,” Evans wrote.
The National Association of Home Builders, the parent organization of the Colorado chapter, has an overarching position against increased tariffs, as stated on its website: “For years, NAHB has been leading the fight against tariffs because of their detrimental effect on housing affordability. In effect, the tariffs act as a tax on American builders, home buyers, and consumers. Moving forward, NAHB will continue working with all relevant stakeholders to exempt tariffs on building materials, boost sawmill production and increase the domestic supply of timber from federally owned lands in an environmentally responsible manner to help fix building material supply chains and ease costs.”
In a letter last year, the NAHB, which states on its website that “more than 60% of builders surveyed by NAHB have reported seeing higher costs because of tariffs,” asked Trump specifically not to increase tariffs on building materials from Canada and Mexico. Trump subsequently increased them multiple times, even after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against his authority to impose sweeping tariffs. A phone message about this to the CAHB was not returned.
In his Aug. 3 congressional newsletter, Evans promoted his return visit to the Leprino Food Company in Greeley. He spotlighted his previous photo op from September 2025 in his newsletter at the time, stating, “The men and women in this industry play a vital role in delivering affordable, high quality food and resources to families across Colorado and nation, and I’m proud to stand alongside them.”
But in congressional testimony in 2022, Leprino Foods’ CEO Mark Durkin opined that he wanted tariffs to be reduced. “If we do not build our globally competitive market access now through reduced tariffs, competitive prices, and consistent shipping, our producers will be unable to grow,” he testified. “There is hardly a more critical priority for the U.S. dairy industry than trade.”
A phone message for Durkin seeking comment on whether he’s on board with Trump’s tariff policy — as well as on Evans’ support for Trump’s tariffs — wasn’t returned by a communications staffer at Leprino, whose website states that it’s the top mozzarella cheese producer in the world.
Evans “Absolutely Confident” About Benefit of Trump’s Tariffs
In a telephone call with constituents last year, Evans said he was confident that after a period of disruption, Trump’s tariff policies would make life more affordable.
“It seems like everything’s in flux, but at the end of the day, I am absolutely confident that by getting back to free and fair trade practices … that will ultimately bring down the prices of goods for all Americans.”
His office didn’t return a message seeking to know if he still believes Trump’s tariffs will bring costs down, with tariffs being blamed widely for increased grocery prices. Congressional Democrats estimated that tariffs will cost the average American family $2,500 in 2026.
The tariff issue may give Democrats “some traction” against Evans in his campaign against Democrat Manny Rutinel, a race that will help determine which party controls the U.S. House next year, according to Paul Teske, a distinguished professor at the University of Colorado Denver who writes the Colorado Inflection Point Substack.
“Evans has supported Trump on most issues, including tariffs,” Teske told the Colorado Times Recorder. “These tariffs, contrary to Trump’s assertions, are paid by American businesses and consumers, including those in CD8. So, for a candidate who wants to seem ‘pro-business,’ these tariffs and their impacts are an issue about which Democrats should be able to gain some traction in the race. Especially for the food processing and other firms in CD8 that are hit hard by tariff issues and retaliation from markets abroad.
“Trump’s approval ratings are all historically negative (generally 2:1 disapproval), including on the issue of the economy, which was positive for him in 2024, and probably helped get him elected. This will also make it hard for Evans to get any separation from Trump on economic and business issues.”
Erik Maulbetsch contributed to this article.
