Small-business owner says overturning Trump tariffs brings more uncertainty

Marc Bowker, owner of Alter Ego Comics in Lima, Ohio, said his first reaction to the Supreme Court decision that overturned some of President Donald Trump's tariffs was, "This is awesome and long overdue." His second was, "Okay, what's next?" He said the president then announced a new 10% global tariff and called the justices who ruled against him unpatriotic and unloyal, which made Bowker feel the dispute "is going to drag on forever" — "like death by a thousand paper cuts." Bowker said he has kept a spreadsheet of every shipment charged a tariff and that his shop has paid over $12,000 since the tariffs began.

He said the administration has created more uncertainty in the small-business landscape than he has seen in 23 years of owning the store. As a small-business owner and a consumer, he said he's paying more for everything his family consumes — "a one-two punch" that has squeezed both business and household spending.

United States, Lima, Ohio

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