By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON- US Senate on Wednesday voted 50-46 to revoke President Donald Trump’s authority to impose steep tariffs on Canada, after his recent decision to raise tariffs on the country by an additional 10 per cent over a television ad that criticized his trade policies, media reported.
The resolution was sponsored by Senator Tim Kaine (Democrat-Virginia), reintroduced this week, argued that Trump’s tariffs on Canada cannot be justified under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
GOP senators — Susan Collins (Maine), Mitch McConnell (Kentucky), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Rand Paul (Kentucky) joined Democrats in supporting the resolution to end Trump’s tariff powers.
The Senate had approved the same measure on April 2, but its progress stalled after the Republican-controlled House refused to take the matter up.
Senator Kaine said “I primarily object to the Canada tariffs because I don’t think there’s an emergency that should trigger the use of this statute,” during the floor debate.
“The fracturing of this long-standing, powerful relationship [with Canada] is one of the many reasons I oppose them.”
Senator Susan Collins, who represents Maine, a state bordering Canada, has warned that the tariffs would hurt her state’s economy.
“The Maine economy is integrated with Canada, our most important trading partner,” she said in a statement, added that tariffs on petroleum products, paper mills, forest industries, and fisheries would be detrimental to many Maine families and local economies.”
Trump’s dispute with Canada escalated earlier this week after Ontario aired a television advertisement during the World Series featured a speech by former US President Ronald Reagan denounced tariffs.
He called the ad a “serious misrepresentation of the facts” and a “hostile act,” Trump announced a 10 per cent increase in tariffs on Canadian imports in retaliation.
US Senate vote came a day after five Republican senators joined Democrats in passing a similar resolution to terminate Trump’s emergency authority to impose tariffs on Brazil.
