Despite indications nationally that business is picking up because of or in spite of Trump’s tariffs, a Maine beach town is in panic mode.
Proprietors in Old Orchard Beach, which by summer sight typically has more Canadians than Mainers, say they’re hoping against hope that Trump hasn’t ruined their “bottom line.”
Gritty, thong-wearing, rough-and-ready Old Orchard Beach, the town once humorously described by a Boston Magazine writer this way:
“To understand Old Orchard Beach, you have to see it to believe it and believe me you shouldn’t see it.”
Yet, by the hundreds of thousands every summer, Canadians flock to Old Orchard to do just that – see it to believe it, and enjoy a little vacation in the process.
Now the town’s businesses are afraid the sky is falling, judging by a piece published last week by National Review.
“Many Quebecers are threatening to stay home this year due in part to the increasingly fraught relationship between the U.S. and Canada, driven largely by President Trump’s rhetorical provocations and tariffs,” NR reported. “Canadians are already cutting back on cross-border trips, which could be bad news for American business owners.”
But a competing piece by The Daily Caller says business is actually improving under Trump.
“American manufacturers are seeing a surge in demand as Trump’s tariffs force companies to reconsider doing business in China,” DC reported. “Trump’s tariffs, including a 145% levy on Chinese goods, are causing American-made products to be more competitive in the market.
“As a result, many small and medium manufacturers are experiencing a surge in demand and are preparing to ramp up production and hire new workers.”
So why all the worry in Old Orchard Beach?
Likely the merchants are paying too much heed to Maine’s two biggest legacy papers, the Portland Press Herald and Bangor Daily News – which on Wednesday ran carbon copies of a story claiming border crossings from Canada into Maine are down since Trump took office.
The only problem with that nonsense is that the pea-brained anti-Trump statisticians measured crossings between January and April when the only places where you might get pizza by the slice – and a “cold” one at that – is at Sunday River or the Camden Snow Bowl.
By design, OOB’s summer business owners annually are obligatorily pessimistic, secretly knowing they’ll be just fine once the fat lady sings come Labor Day.
After all, where else can you get a slice, fries and a full “view” – just by sitting on a wooden bench along the pier?
