Jeff Flake Drafting Bill To Kneecap Trump On Trade Policy

The US leader has triggered howls of protest in his own camp by slapping tariffs of 25 percent on imports of steel and 10 percent on aluminum on Thursday, with only Canada and Mexico exempt for the time being.

It will be pretty interesting if Flake ends up introducing legislation to counter Trump's tariffs, potentially setting up yet another clash between the two politicians.

"The Constitution gives the responsibility to the Congress and the Congress has consistently delegated these powers to the executive branch", Sasse said.

Republican lawmakers are not happy about President Donald Trump's import tariffs on steel and aluminum. One of them was Brown, who welcomed action he said could stop China from dumping steel into the USA market, calling it "well overdue". A WTO decision wouldn't halt US tariffs, but rather authorize retaliation from trading partners.

USA trade policy has always been written with the intent to give the president broad authority to handle global trade without Congress nitpicking. "They (the administration) truly believe that tariffs is the way to go".

Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee Orrin Hatch, a Republican from Utah, has expressed his opposition to the Trump tariffs. "The new tax reform law has boosted the economy and we certainly don't want to jeopardize those gains".

Tariffs, also known as taxes on goods traded between countries, are anathema to most Republicans. Party leaders have voiced rare public concern about the president's policies.

"Trade wars are not won, they are only lost", Flake said in the statement. "Tariffs married with uncertainty are even worse".

Republican senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said: "There's really a growing level of optimism because we were returning certainty to the American and Wisconsin economy".

One of those bills is by Sen.

Brown is not the only Democrat championing Trump's tariffs.

"I'll have a right to go up or down depending on the country", he said. Roy Blunt, R-Mo.

And while there are limits to what they can do to stop it, members are contemplating measures that could block the president from fully implementing his proposal. "We're going to be very flexible". Jeff Flake on Sunday said President Trump needs a 2020 challenge from someone who holds Flake's traditional conservative views.

"I generally support the president on just about everything, but I think he's been misled, there are some people down there who have been misleading him on some of these things", Hatch continued.