U.S. dropping some Canada tariffs, Susan Collins says as trade war looms over Maine Senate race

The U.S. will issue tariff exemptions on several categories of Canadian imports, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said Friday.The Republican incumbent's announcement came as voters have already started casting ballots in the pivotal Maine Senate race, which has emerged as one of the most competitive contests of the midterm election cycle.President Donald Trump has waged a trade war against Canada resulting in heavy tariffs on a wide range of goods imported from the top U.S. economic partner. Many of those tariffs have put strain on businesses in Maine, which buys more from Canada than any other foreign country.Collins, whose Democratic opponent Troy Jackson has worked to tie her to Trump's unpopular tariffs, has touted her efforts to push back on the president's protectionist trade policies.In Friday's press release announcing the new tariff exemptions, Collins said she has asked U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to lower Trump's import duties."In my repeated conversations with Ambassador Greer, Secretary Lutnick, and other senior Administration officials, I have asked for tariff relief for these important products and stressed the burdens ad...