President-elect Donald Trump proposed sweeping latest tariffs through the election campaign. The self-proclaimed “Tariff man” has said he could impose such taxes on U.S. imports without congressional approval.
There is debate among economists and other experts about whether he would be able to do this.
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla. — one of three lawmakers vying to succeed Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-KY, as Senate majority leader — suggested Sunday that Trump would likely need help from Congress.
“The tariffs that will most likely require 60 [votes in the Senate] unless there is a way to achieve this through reconciliation at 51 [votes]”,” Scott said on Fox News “Sunday Morning Futures.”
Reconciliation is a technique to pass tax and spending bills with an easy majority within the Senate. This avoids a filibuster, which requires 60 votes to beat.
Control of the House of Representatives, which might should pass such laws, remains unclear.
A tariff is a tax on imported goods that is generally passed on to the consumer. Trump has promised blanket tariffs of 10% to 20% on all imports coming into the United States and a tariff of at least 60% on Chinese imports.
He has also proposed others, such as a tariff of at least 200% on vehicles from Mexico and a similar amount for the company Deere & Co. if it were to move some production from the US to Mexico.
Economists argue over whether Trump's tariff plan, particularly the tax on global imports, can be implemented through executive action.
Alan Wolff, former deputy director general of the World Trade Organization, wrote in September that “Trump doesn’t have the authority to do this.”
However, Trump could “implement national security” or use “many various things within the law” to potentially impose blanket tariffs, says Jason Furman, a Harvard University professor and former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers during the Obama administration, told CNBC.
“However,” he added, “everything would end in court.”
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