Barrett sells Haiti-made t-shirts despite ‘Made in USA’ claim

Republican Rep. Tom Barrett is selling t-shirts made in Haiti, even though his online store claims they were manufactured in the United States.

This discrepancy is particularly striking because Barrett, who represents Michigan’s 7th District, has made boosting domestic jobs and manufacturing a focus of his reelection campaign.

“We really want to onshore more of our own manufacturing,” he told WLIX in April while touring a machine plant in Lansing. He claimed President Donald Trump’s policies are making this goal a reality, even though the number of offshored jobs surged last year.

Barrett’s campaign website sells t-shirts with the words “Barrett Brigade” and a silhouette of a helicopter, a reference to the congressman’s tenure as a Black Hawk pilot in the U.S. Army. A product description says the item is “100% cotton” and “Made in USA.”

Photos of the t-shirt from August 2024, however, show a visible tag with the words “made in Haiti.” The tag also indicates that the shirts were made by Gildan, a Canadian-based clothing company that offshores its production.

It is unconfirmed whether other Barrett campaign products are made overseas as well.

Gildan has come under fire over the years for allegedly abusive labor practices.

In 2023, the company fired 64 workers at a factory in Port-au-Prince who were striking over unpaid overtime. A decade earlier, the Toronto Star reported that Gildan employees in Haiti were paid so little that many could not afford basic expenses, including food.

Barrett is currently running for a second term. His Democratic opponent will be chosen in an Aug. 4 primary. Three of the Democrats challenging Barrett have been endorsed by labor unions.

Barrett currently has no labor support.