Don Fox has a front row seat to the trade war between the Trump administration and China. That’s because his Burrillville, Rhode Island-based company, Alashan Cashmere, imports cashmere sweaters made in China. Now, tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump threaten to bring Fox’s business to a standstill for the fall season.
The tariffs on the products he imports now range from 140-160%, Fox said. He called the tariffs “business-killer levels.”
Despite the tariffs, though, Fox remains unwavering in his support for President Trump. Sure, he’d like to see tariffs applied in a narrower way. But Fox believes Trump is correct to target the huge trade imbalance between the U.S. and China.
“I think President Trump is taking the bull by the horns, unlike any other president in history and saying this is a reality and we need to do something about it,” Fox said. “I don’t think it can be baby steps. I don’t think it can be small measures.”
Robust support for Trump comes with the territory in Burrillville, a town of about 16,000 residents named for an early-19th-century senator. Trump got almost 62% of the vote in Burrillville in November — his biggest percentage in Rhode Island — and Burrillville was also the president’s top Ocean State community in 2020.
Democrats say Trump’s approach to tariffs is chaotic. Consumer confidence is down and there’s heightened concern about a possible recession.
Fox, who serves as president of the all-Republican Burrillville Town Council, says Trump’s message still has purchase in a community where vacant textile mills remind residents of a brighter economic past.
“Now I’m not saying that the textile mills are going to be brought back to the United States, nor should they — and I’m in the textile business,” Fox said. “But I think the common sense of the Trump agenda resonates with people here because it puts Americans first, it puts our industries first, it puts citizens over illegal immigrants.”
Democrat Barack Obama won Burrillville by comfortable margins in 2008 and 2012. Registered Republicans now outnumber Democrats by about 450 voters in the town. Burrillville has become red over time, while former GOP communities like Barrington and East Greenwich are now blue.
Judging by a recent visit to a few local spots, it seems that Trump supporters in Burrillville mostly stand by the president, even with an unsettled stock market.
Having a cup of coffee at Johnny’s Victory Diner, Jason Meunier said nothing about President Trump’s actions in office give him pause.
“Oh, God no, not at all,” Meunier said. “Nope, get the illegals out — out the door. Get the crooks out, out the door. Get the money back into the people’s hands, with DOGE, take care of all the [stupid] spending that’s going on. No, he gives me no pause for anything.”
At the Dunkin’ Donuts on Broncos Highway, Nancy Ringer said she has some regrets about voting for Trump last year. She says Burrillville voters wanted change, but she now finds Trump too extreme.
“I’m worried about the economy, especially people who are having trouble now, living from paycheck to paycheck,” Ringer said. “I’m waiting for the dust to settle and see where all this plays out, but I’m not sure.”
At the Statehouse, Burrillville state Rep. David Place is the second-ranking Republican in the Rhode Island House of Representatives. Place likens tariffs to poison, but he says his constituents who voted for Trump stand behind the president. He thinks blue-collar workers explain why Trump has more support in Burrillville than other GOP strongholds like Foster, Glocester, Scituate and West Greenwich.
“Firefighters, laborers, police officers — I have a large number of these guys,” Place said. “I can count how many firefighters from Providence and Woonsocket are living in my district; how many police officers, state troopers. I think that makes the big difference.”
At Alashan Cashmere in Burrillville, Don Fox says he has enough inventory of luxury sweaters to keep his business going for the time being. He declined to say how long it would take for tariffs to threaten his operation.
Still, after decades of doing business in China, Fox says he expects China’s leaders to want to save face in the midst of conflict. So will China’s need for American consumers prevail over President Trump’s attempt to reorder global trade?
“I don’t have a lot of confidence just yet that the Chinese will blink in the short term,” Fox said. “I think it’s our hope that they will blink in the medium term.”
Who blinks first will have a big impact on Donald Trump’s presidency. And the way in which Democrats responded to losing the White House last year could signal whether the party can ever regain support in communities like Burrillville.
