# Sununu and Pappas spar on tariffs, Iran war and taxes

> New Hampshire Senate candidates debate cost of living and their records ahead of Election Day.
- Title: Sununu and Pappas spar on tariffs, Iran war and taxes
- Summary: New Hampshire Senate candidates debate cost of living and their records ahead of Election Day. Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas and Republican former Sen. John E.
- Keywords: chris pappas, john e. sununu, new hampshire senate, 2026 midterms, tariffs, iran war, social security, taxes, manchester new hampshire, wmur-tv, fact check, PolitiFact
- Source: PolitiFact — https://politifact.com/article/2026/oct/28/new-hampshire-senate-debate-pappas-sununu-tariffs
- Author: Amy Sherman
- Published: 2026-10-29T03:50:08+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: chris pappas, john e. sununu, new hampshire senate, 2026 midterms, tariffs, iran war, social security, taxes, manchester new hampshire, wmur-tv, politics, fact check
## Two candidates clash in New Hampshire
Democratic U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas and Republican former Sen. John E. Sununu debated in Manchester, New Hampshire on October twenty-eighth, twenty twenty-six, less than a week before Election Day.
## The debate focused on cost of living
The candidates sparred over solutions for increasing costs and who would deliver better results for New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate, with less combative exchanges than other states' Senate debates this year.
## Pappas ties Sununu to Trump
Pappas depicted Sununu as an ally of President Donald Trump, while Sununu sought to distance himself from Trump's unpopular policies like the Iran war and tariffs.
## Sununu links Pappas to Biden
Sununu tied Pappas to former President Joe Biden's policies and national Democratic leaders such as Nancy Pelosi.
## Pappas claims Sununu downplayed tariffs
Pappas said Sununu called tariffs important but claimed the impact was modest, citing a woman from Hollis who lost her automotive job last fall.

> Well, tell that to Judy from Hollis, who lost her job last fall.
## Sununu's tariff comments lack context
In October twenty twenty-five, Sununu backed tariffs as a negotiation strategy.In September twenty twenty-five, he said economic impact was very modest.During the debate, he said the trade war with Canada was a huge mistake.

> Economic impact has been very modest.
## Sununu's Iran war position shifted
Sununu claimed he said from the beginning the Iran war was a mistake. But in March, he said the approach was very effective. He shifted his stance by August, calling it a tactical mistake.

> has been effective, very effective
## Pappas exaggerates Sununu's wealth
Pappas claimed Sununu's net worth surged to thirty-five million dollars from lobbying work. Financial disclosures show his net worth is between seven point nine million and thirty-six point three million dollars.

> cashed in working for one of the biggest lobbying firms in Washington, D.C.
## Sununu was never formally a lobbyist
Sununu worked for Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld LLP for about a decade but never filed a lobbying disclosure form, which is required to lobby Congress or the executive branch.
## Sununu exaggerates Pappas tax votes
Sununu claimed Pappas consistently voted to increase taxes. Most of the sixty-eight votes cited were procedural votes. The bills included pandemic relief with stimulus checks and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
## Pappas voted against Trump's tax law
In twenty twenty-five, Pappas voted against Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, joining all Democrats in opposing it because of cuts to healthcare.
## Pappas mostly correct on Social Security
Pappas said Sununu proposed privatizing Social Security. Sununu pushed for the idea from two thousand onward and introduced bills in two thousand one, two thousand four and two thousand five.
## Sununu's Social Security plan was voluntary
Sununu said his legislation would have maintained a guaranteed minimum benefit for everyone. The private accounts would have been voluntary or limited by age to new entrants to the program.

> a guaranteed minimum benefit for everyone
## Key takeaway

Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas and Republican former Sen. John E. Sununu debated policy solutions for inflation and healthcare costs in Manchester, New Hampshire on October twenty-eighth, twenty twenty-six, with fact-checkers finding both candidates made exaggerated claims.