Two Democratic senators are pushing back against President Trump’s freshly announced tariff plans with a new proposal.
Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) introduced the “Stopping Tariffs on Allies and Bolstering Legislative Exercise of (STABLE) Trade Policy Act” on Thursday, which, if passed, would force the President to seek approval from Congress before slapping tariffs on trade partners.
Their initiative arrives just as the Trump administration announced plans to enact fresh tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China on Friday.
According to the proposed bill, not only would Congressional approval be required, but the President would also need to provide detailed reasoning for such tariff decisions.
This includes explaining how imposing tariffs would affect both the U.S. economy and its foreign relations.
Coons didn’t mince words about his frustration, stating in a release, “Congress gave the president the authority to impose tariffs so that he could combat our enemies in the event of a national security crisis, not so that he could pursue grudges against our allies and neighbors.”
Trump, undeterred, reiterated his commitment to imposing a hefty 25 percent tariff on goods from both Mexico and Canada on Thursday.
“I’ll be putting the tariff of 25 percent on Canada and Mexico, and we will really have to do that because we have very big deficits with those countries,” Trump commented from the Oval Office, hinting that the rates could change over time.
He tied his decision to concerns like drug trafficking and migration at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Senator Coons, however, labeled these tariff threats as an abuse of presidential powers. “If the president is going [to] abuse this power to bully and coerce our allies, Congress should take this authority back,” Coons declared, warning that the proposed tariffs could wreak havoc on diplomatic ties with allies and increase costs for American households by hundreds of dollars annually.
Kaine also expressed strong disapproval, directly addressing the potential economic fallout.
“Virginians want costs to go down, not up,” he said, accusing the President of jeopardizing the economy. “It’s time for Congress to make it clear that no president should abuse existing tariff authorities designed to protect America’s national security from threats posed by our adversaries to slap tariffs on our allies and closest trading partners,” he noted.
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau didn’t hold back in his response to Trump’s threats.
During a speech addressing Canada-U.S. relations, Trudeau emphasized Canada’s resolve, stating, “We’re showing the new American administration that they have a strong partner in Canada when it comes to upholding border security, all while simultaneously underscoring that we won’t back down, that if tariffs are implemented against Canada, we will respond.”
Trudeau went on to assert that all options were on the table until the tariffs were gone.
Trump hasn’t been shy about his dissatisfaction with trade relationships involving Mexico and Canada, which he described on Thursday as “unfair.”
He reminded reporters, “Look, Mexico and Canada have never been good to us on trade… They’ve treated us very unfairly on trade, and we will be able to make that up very quickly because we don’t need the products that they have.”
He doubled down on attributing the blame to issues like fentanyl smuggling and migration crossing through Mexico.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shockingly announced Friday that the 25 percent tariff on Mexico and Canada, coupled with a 10 percent import duty on goods from China, would go into effect the following day.
“Starting tomorrow, those tariffs will be in place,” Leavitt confirmed to reporters, calling the move “promises made and promises kept” by Trump.
When pressed about whether these tariffs could lead to rising inflation for Americans, Leavitt dismissed such concerns as “hypothetical.”
She argued the President was focused on rolling out tariffs effectively while also ensuring inflation and costs remain under control.
On Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s defiant remarks, she simply shrugged them off, asserting, “I don’t think so. I think the President is going to implement those tariffs tomorrow, and he will respond to Mr. Trudeau comments in due time, I am sure.”
Trump also brushed aside concerns about oil’s inclusion in these tariffs. During remarks at the White House, he remarked, “Oil is going to have nothing to do with it as far as I’m concerned.”
