Critics of President Donald Trump's tariff proposals, both left and right, are hoping that he will change his mind. But Trump is doubling down and saying that as soon as this Saturday, February 1, he may impose across-the-board 25 percent tariffs on all goods entering the United States from Canada and Mexico — both of which are major trading partners.
Tariffs are not universally popular among Republicans; Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), former GOP leader in the U.S. Senate, is a major critic of them. And tariffs, according to Semafor reporters Burgess Everett and Shelby Talcott, are one of the ways in which Trump "is taking the Republican Congress on an economic wild ride."
In an article published Friday, Everett and Talcott explain, "He's threatening serious tariffs that could hit key U.S. allies this weekend, just days after confounding Congress with his plans to freeze federal spending. Some GOP lawmakers are hoping they can still head off the tariffs, and a few complained about the conflicting guidance on government money. But most — especially those from red areas — said they're feeling little heat for the president's moves…. It's an important moment for congressional Republicans, who are divided between free traders and more populist members."
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The reporters add, "The latter camp has no problem with Trump threatening, and following through with, tariffs on allies. Senators in both parties pressed Howard Lutnick, Trump's nominee to lead the Commerce Department, about those levies during his confirmation hearing this week."
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) is hoping Trump will show some restraint with tariffs.
Rounds told Semafor, "I'm not getting the indication that it's going to be an immediate thing, because I know the president doesn't want to drive up the price for fuel. That would be a serious problem if we just all of a sudden stopped heavy crude from coming into refiners in the United States. So I think they’ll be reasonable."
"Looming tariffs" and "the federal funding freeze," according to Everett and Talcott, are creating "nail-gnawing uncertainty for Congress."
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"The fault lines in the GOP are real, on both the tariffs and the spending freeze," the Semafor reporters note. "But many Republicans clearly have Trump’s back despite the prospective economic hit."
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Read the full Semafor article at this link.