WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a rare bipartisan move, the U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to terminate President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariff regime, marking a symbolic rebuke of the administration’s aggressive trade policies that have strained relations with key allies and raised costs for American consumers.
Despite the vote, Europe’s tariffs will remain in place, with no immediate benefit for EU pharma firms.
Asked about the impact of the vote, Yale law professor Natasha Sarin referred Euractiv to the ‘Budget Lab’ report, published on Thursday. Yale’s latest report illustrates that with the current tariff rate, “consumers face an overall average effective tariff rate of 17.9%, the highest since 1934.”
The resolution, which passed 51-47, saw four Republican senators – Rand Paul (Ky.), Mitch McConnell (Ky.), Susan Collins (Maine), and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) – break ranks to join Democrats in voting to repeal the national emergency declaration that underpins Trump’s tariff authority. The declaration, issued on 2 April and dubbed ‘Liberation Day’ by the president, enabled the imposition of steep reciprocal tariffs on imports from countries including the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Brazil.
“This is about restoring constitutional balance and protecting American families from unnecessary economic pain,” said Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the lead Democratic sponsor of the resolution. “American families are being squeezed by prices going up and up and up. More than three-quarters of families say their monthly expenses have increased by more than $100 a month.”
No immediate effect
The resolution’s passage follows a series of Senate votes earlier in the week aimed at dismantling specific tariffs, including a 35 per cent levy on Canadian goods and a 50 per cent tariff on Brazilian imports. Those measures also garnered support from the same group of Republican senators, with Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) joining the Brazil vote.
Despite the Senate’s actions, the resolutions are unlikely to have any immediate practical effect. The Hill notes that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has signalled that the House will not bring the measures to a vote, and President Trump has vowed to veto any legislation that curtails his trade authority.
“Congress must reclaim its constitutional authority and stop this economic overreach before more jobs and industries are destroyed,” said Senator Paul, who has emerged as a vocal critic of Trump’s unilateral tariff powers. “These tariffs hit families, farmers, and small businesses the hardest, and in Kentucky, they devastate cornerstone industries like car manufacturing, bourbon, homebuilding and shipping.”
The votes were made possible by a decades-old statute – the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) – which allows Congress to nullify a presidential emergency declaration. Democrats have used the provision to force votes on Trump’s trade policies, exposing fault lines within the Republican Party.
Blocking moves
The Senate’s actions come amid a broader debate over the future of U.S. trade policy under Trump’s second term. The president has continued to wield tariffs as both an economic and geopolitical tool, announcing a reduction in duties on Chinese goods following a meeting with President Xi Jinping in South Korea. In exchange, China agreed to purchase 25 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans annually for the next three years.
Trump hailed the deal as a triumph. “This negotiation will secure prosperity and security to millions of Americans,” he said.
The House GOP leadership has moved to block similar resolutions from reaching the floor, passing a rule earlier this year that allows them to prevent votes on privileged resolutions under IEEPA. This procedural manoeuvre has effectively insulated Trump’s trade agenda from congressional oversight.
While the Senate votes are largely symbolic, they underscore growing unease within the Republican ranks over the economic consequences of Trump’s trade policies. The dissenting senators represent states with significant exposure to international trade and industries vulnerable to retaliatory tariffs.
The broader economic impact of tariffs remains a point of contention. Analysts have noted that while some domestic industries have benefited from protectionist measures, the overall effect has been inflationary, with costs passed on to consumers. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the tariffs have added billions to consumer prices annually.
Tariff revenues, with consequences
The Washington Post reports that the United States has amassed approximately $88 billion in tariff revenue as of August, according to data from Customs and Border Protection. While the figure underscores the scale of the administration’s trade enforcement, economists warn of broader fiscal and consumer consequences.
Analysis by the Tax Foundation projects that the tariffs will effectively raise taxes by more than $1,600 per household annually, while exerting a drag on long-term growth.
Over the next decade, the cumulative impact is expected to reduce gross domestic product by 0.5 per cent, reflecting the inflationary pressures and supply chain distortions associated with sustained protectionist measures.
For now, Trump’s tariff authority remains intact, bolstered by a loyal House majority and the threat of presidential veto. But the Senate’s actions suggest that opposition to the president’s trade strategy is growing – and may yet shape the contours of future policy debates.
The vote may not be a completely hollow victory, Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.), told reporters, “I did learn in the first Trump term that the president is responsive to things like this. When he sees Republicans starting to vote against his policies, even in small numbers, that makes an impression on him and can often cause him to alter his behaviour.”
(VM)