Articles
Lawmakers brace for Trump's next move on auto tariffs
Washington,
February 15, 2019
Tags:
Economy
CNN |
Lawmakers from both parties are bracing for a final report from President Donald Trump's Department of Commerce on whether imports of automobiles and auto parts threaten national security. The findings and recommendations of the probe launched last May are due by February 17, but they could be sent to the White House as soon as Friday -- although the administration may choose not to make the document public right away. Trump, who has threatened to slap tariffs of up to 25% on cars coming from Europe and elsewhere, will have 90 days to decide how to proceed, but he could act at any point once he receives the report.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley warned Trump against pursuing tariffs in a floor speech Thursday, pointing to the potential for lost jobs and price increases for American consumers.
...
Virginia Democratic Rep. Don Beyer -- a free-trade voice on the House Ways and Means committee who is one of seven Democratic cosponsors of the lower chamber's version of Toomey's bill -- argued Trump's looming threat to impose auto tariffs could spur action from a Congress that has been reluctant to confront him on the issue.
"I don't think there's any greater fear right now than the notion of applying 232 tariffs to cars and what that would mean in terms of disrupting consumer markets and disrupting the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people," said Beyer.
... Beyer sounded optimistic about winning support among his colleagues. "If it's the right thing to do and we have enough votes and the will of the leadership to pass it, then we're going to pass it," he said.
But he is willing to consider alternatives, such as a bill introduced by Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman, a measure Grassley has heralded as a good starting point.
... "It's weaker than ours, but sometimes politics is the art of the possible," Beyer said. "If ours dies and theirs lives, I think we would move forward on that. But we shouldn't start there." Click here to read the full article |