Cantwell and top Senate Republican introduce bill to give Congress control over tariffs

WASHINGTON – As markets around the world reeled in response to sweeping tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington state led a bipartisan effort on Thursday to give Congress more control over U.S. trade policy.

Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, introduced legislation with Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, that would require the president to notify Congress before enacting tariffs, which would expire within 60 days without congressional approval. The Trade Review Act also would let lawmakers end tariffs at any time and require an administration to provide both a rationale for imposing new taxes on imports and an analysis of their impact on American businesses and consumers.

“This bill reasserts Congress’s role over trade policy to ensure rules-based trade policies are transparent, consistent, and benefit the American public,” Cantwell said in a statement. “Arbitrary tariffs, particularly on our allies, damage U.S. export opportunities and raise prices for American consumers and businesses.”

Grassley chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, and both he and Cantwell are senior members of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over tariffs and foreign trade. The senators modeled their bill after the War Powers Resolution, a 1973 law enacted in response to then-President Richard Nixon bombing Cambodia during the Vietnam War without notifying Congress.

Coincidentally, Cambodia faces the highest tariff of any country, 49%, under Trump’s new policies.

Republicans have largely avoided criticizing President Donald Trump’s policies, but four GOP senators joined Democrats on Wednesday to pass a resolution that would effectively end a previous set of tariffs he imposed on Canada. Grassley was not among the Republicans who backed the measure. They included Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska – two moderates whose states depend heavily on trade with Canada – and Sens. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul, both of Kentucky.

Like that resolution, Cantwell and Grassley’s bill appears unlikely to pass the Republican-majority House and would need the support of two-thirds of both chambers to overcome a presidential veto.

Grassley, first elected to represent his heavily agricultural state in 1980, is the Senate’s longest-serving member and president pro tempore, a title he took over from Sen. Patty Murray of Washington when Republicans retook the Senate majority in January. That makes the 91-year-old Iowan third in line for the presidency, behind the vice president and speaker of the House.

“For too long, Congress has delegated its clear authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce to the executive branch,” Grassley said in a statement, adding that the Trade Review Act is intended “to reassert Congress’ constitutional role and ensure Congress has a voice in trade policy.”

The senators introduced their bill a day after Trump announced sweeping tariffs of at least 10% on the entire world, including uninhabited islands, prompting incredulous reactions from around the world and jokes about tariffs imposed on penguins. Goods imported from the European Union will see an additional 20% tax, and the rate will be even higher for imports from long-time U.S. allies like Japan and South Korea.