Anger Rises as Tariffs Take Effect

Lawmakers may have left steamy Washington, D.C., for their own districts and a 4^th of July break.  But Politico said things have only begun to heat up talks to kill President Donald Trump’s rapidly spreading tariff war.

In talking about Trump’s tariffs, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah says, “I want to kill them.”  The Finance Committee chaired by Hatch is working on legislation to rein the president in.  Republican Senators Bob Corker of Tennessee and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania are still working on what some have called a “hand grenade” amendment to stop Trump’s trade offensive.  Politico said Republican sources tell them not a party meeting goes by where Republicans don’t fume over why the president isn’t listening to them on trade.

Senate Ag Committee chair Pat Roberts says his committee has met with the president on trade, but says, “Trump is a protectionist who has his policy wrapped around the rear axle of a pickup and it’s hard to get out.” The U.S. Chamber of Commerce released a report highlighting how much every state is affected by retaliatory tariffs. “The administration is threatening to undermine the economic progress it worked so hard to achieve,” says Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue.

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