Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt made it clear this week that President Donald Trump was right about tariffs — and that his state is already seeing the payoff.
Appearing on The Hill Sunday on NewsNation, Stitt said Trump’s tariff strategy is helping bring manufacturing back to the United States, calling it both a national security and supply chain issue. In other words, this isn’t just about money — it’s about not begging foreign countries for the stuff we need to survive.
Stitt said Oklahoma directly benefited from Trump’s approach, pointing to the arrival of EGA, which will build the first new aluminum smelter in the U.S. in 45 years. That project, he noted, had been in the works for years, but Trump personally sealed the deal while visiting the UAE. So yes, America-first actually meant America-built — shocking, right?
But Stitt also pointed out a frustrating twist: companies trying to build factories in the U.S. are being hit with tariffs when they import equipment needed to set up production. In his words, it feels strange to punish businesses for doing exactly what Trump wants — bringing jobs and supply chains back home. Making aluminum in Oklahoma, Texas, Michigan, or California should be rewarded, not treated like a crime.
Still, Stitt backed Trump’s push for fair trade, saying the U.S. can’t keep letting other countries rip us off. Reciprocity matters, and Trump’s pressure campaign is forcing that conversation whether globalists like it or not.
Stitt also criticized Congress for being stuck in gridlock, noting that the Supreme Court has now pushed tariff authority back toward lawmakers who can barely pass a budget, let alone act quickly on trade. He said this constant political standoff hurts everyday Americans and blocks real progress.
In short, Trump’s tariffs are already doing what decades of empty promises never did: reviving U.S. manufacturing and putting Americans back to work. With leaders like Stitt seeing real results on the ground, the message is simple — bringing jobs home isn’t radical. It’s common sense. And that’s exactly why it’s working.
