US President Donald Trump has received another blow from the Senate on Wednesday. In fact, members of the upper house of Parliament (Congress) voted by a margin of 50-46 against the decision of the Trump administration, under which it had imposed heavy import duties (tariffs) on Canada. Trump recently imposed an additional 10 percent tariff on Canada because a television ad there criticized his trade policies. This information was given in the report of ‘The Hill’.
Four Republican senators supported the proposal
Four Republican senators, Susan Collins (Maine), Michelle McConnell (Kentucky), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Rand Paul (Kentucky), along with Democratic senators, supported the proposal, which could eliminate Trump’s authority to impose tariffs. The Senate had earlier also passed the same proposal on April 2. But the House then controlled by the Republican Party did not take it forward. This proposal was re-introduced by Democratic Party Senator Tim Kaine (Virginia). He said Trump’s imposition of tariffs on Canada is not justified under international emergency economic powers law.
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Downside of tariffs breaking partnership with Canada: Tim Kaine
During debate in the Senate, Kaine said, I oppose these tariffs imposed on Canada, because there is no such emergency for which this law should be used. Breaking the strong long-standing partnership with Canada is a major downside of these tariffs.
Tariffs will hurt Maine’s economy: Susan Collins
Senator Susan Collins, representing the state of Maine, had warned several times that these tariffs would harm her state’s economy. He said, Maine’s economy is deeply tied to Canada, which is our largest significant trading partner. He also said that tariffs imposed on petroleum products, paper mills, forest industries, and fisheries would harm many Maine families and the local economy.
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The dispute between Trump and Canada escalated this week when a TV ad was shown during the ‘World Series’ (baseball championship) in Ontario, which featured a speech by former President Ronald Reagan in which he opposed tariffs. Trump called the ad a “serious distortion of the facts” and a “hostile move” and responded by imposing an additional 10 percent duty on imports from Canada. This voting in the Senate took place a day before, when five senators of the Republican Party, along with the Democrats, voted in favor of the proposal to eliminate Trump’s power to impose emergency tariffs on Brazil.
