{"id":40323,"date":"2018-06-07T16:18:14","date_gmt":"2018-06-07T16:18:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2018\/06\/07\/trump-tariffs-hit-blowback-from-home-and-abroad\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:21:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:21:12","slug":"trump-tariffs-hit-blowback-from-home-and-abroad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2018\/06\/07\/trump-tariffs-hit-blowback-from-home-and-abroad\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump tariffs hit blowback from home and abroad"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 U.S. Sen. Bob Corker<\/a>, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, unveiled his bill to require congressional approval for tariffs<\/a> justified by national security on Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bill marks a domestic rebuke of President Donald Trump\u2019s aluminum and steel tariffs just as he heads to the G-7 summit in Quebec where tensions with allied nations over the penalties are running high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump on June 1 invoked Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act to impose a 25 percent surcharge on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum from Europe, Mexico and Canada. However, Corker and other lawmakers argue Trump has misapplied the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union, which exported some 5.5 million tons of steel to the U.S. last year, claims Trump\u2019s move is protectionism and breaks global trade rules. The EU on Wednesday announced it will start imposing duties from July on $3.4 billion worth of U.S. steel, agricultural and other products, including bourbon, peanut butter, cranberries and orange juice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The defense industry<\/a> had been bracing<\/a> for retaliation from allies, and on Wednesday, leaders in other sectors welcomed Corker\u2019s legislation. The American International Automobile Dealers Association hailed Corker\u2019s bill as protecting American workers and 570,000 auto retail jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Trump administration\u2019s demonstrated willingness to use Section 232 to declare certain industries, including steel, aluminum, and autos, threats to national security, and punish them with harsh tariffs, is an actual threat to the American economy,\u201d AIADA President and CEO Cody Lusk said in a statement Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly had a testy phone call over the tariffs on May 25, wherein Trudeau expressed skepticism at the national security justification. Trump reportedly quipped: \u201cDidn\u2019t you guys burn down the White House?\u201d referring to the War of 1812.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To clean up, the House Foreign Affairs Committee\u2019s top Democrat, Eliot Engel, held a call with Robert Nault, chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development in the Canadian House of Commons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe reassured Mr. Nault that the President\u2019s irresponsible actions do not represent how the majority of our Congress feels about Canada and the importance of the U.S.-Canada partnership,\u201d said Engel\u2019s readout of the call.<\/p>\n\n\n\t