Only a few hours after President Donald Trump unveiled a multitude of new prices, the Senate controlled by the GOP voted to block a large part of its sales program.
The Senate adopted a resolution to end the national emergency that Trump declared on February 1 which allows him to implement prices in Canada. The bill should not be taken up by the Chamber, so Trump’s ability to impose prices in Canada will not be affected.
However, it is an unwelcome symbolic reprimand of the president’s commercial program, coming on what he had nicknamed “Liberation Day”.
It was a vote of 51-48, each democratic senator voting for the bill, as well as four Republicans:
- Senator Susan Collins of Maine
- Kentucky Mitch McConnell Senator
- Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska
- Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky
Kansas Republican Senator Roger Marshall was not present for the vote.
Paul, a libertarian republican who has always spoken in support of free trade, even co-spared the resolution, which was introduced by the Democratic Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia.
“Canada prices will threaten us with a recession,” Paul told journalists on Wednesday. “I mean, it’s a terrible and terrible idea.”
Collins, which faces a competitive re -election fight in 2026, quoted on Wednesday the dependence of its state in trade with Canada in a speech on the ground.
“Maine’s economy is integrated in Canada, our most important trading partner,” said Collins. “Canada prices would be detrimental to many Maine families and our local savings.”
Although Murkowski is not ready for re -election next year, her condition also depends on trade with Canada, and she did not hesitate to criticize Trump and his administration. McConnell, the former leader of the Senate GOP, also criticized Trump’s pricing plans.
Earlier Wednesday, Trump announced a reference rate of 10% on imports from all foreign countries, as well as higher reciprocal rates on a long list of other countries and a rate of 25% on foreign automobile imports.
Trump has not announced new prices on Mexico or Canada, and the White House said that there would be no price on goods that comply with the American-mexico-Canada agreement.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Kaine and other Democratic senators said that the prices in Canada have specifically made sense, given the country’s long-standing alliance with the United States.
“The president justified the imposition of these prices, in my opinion, an invented emergency,” said Kaine. “The urgency of fentanyl comes from Mexico and China. It is not from Canada.”
In a social post of truth early in the morning on Wednesday, Trump said that he hoped that the GOP senators who planned to vote for the anti-varifness resolution “would arise on the republican train, for a change”.
“They play with the life of the American people, and directly in the hands of radical democrats and drugs of drugs,” wrote Trump. “The Senate bill is only a DEMS scheme to show and expose the weakness of certain Republicans.”
This argument may have conquered certain Republicans who otherwise be wary of prices, such as Senator Ron Johnson by Wisconsin.
“I’m not going to support their attempt to damage Trump,” said Johnson to journalists.
Asked about Trump’s argument, Paul was not discouraged.
“I would say that the prices, especially which lead to a recession, are politically devastating,” said Paul.
businessinsider
