President Donald Trump made waves after holding the White House Crosshall event in Washington on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. | Photo Credit: AP
Senate Republicans narrowly voted for a democratic resolution on Wednesday (April 30, 2025) to block global tariffs announced by Donald Trump earlier this month, giving the president a modest victory as lawmakers from both parties remain skeptical of his trade agenda.
Trump announced widespread tariffs on almost all US trading partners on April 2, and announced a 90-day suspension of import taxes after a market meltdown. Amidst uncertainty for both U.S. consumers and businesses, the Commerce Department said Wednesday that the US economy shrank 0.3% from January to March, the first decline in three years.
The 49-49 votes came weeks after the Senate approved a resolution that hampered Trump’s ability to impose tariffs on Canada. The measure passed 51-48 in a vote by four Republicans, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Markovsky of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky. But McConnell – who is sharply critical of tariffs, but hasn’t said how he’ll vote – and Democrat Sen. Sheldon White House was absent Wednesday, with Democrats denying a passing vote.
Democrats said their main goal is to put Republicans on the record and to try to reaffirm the power of Congress.
“The Senate cannot be a crazy, neglecting audience of tariffs,” said Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, the lead sponsor of the resolution.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said disastrous economic numbers should be a “alarm call” for Republicans.
Noting responsibilities for Trump, GOP leaders have encouraged their meetings not to vote for resolutions, despite the continued persuasiveness of many on tariffs. Vice President JD Vance attended the Senator’s GOP luncheon on Tuesday along with US trade representative Jamieson Greer.
Collins said the close vote “exemplifies concerns about the president’s plans.”
“In part, the president’s plans are still evolving, but many of us have heard from employers about the impact of tariffs in a negative way,” she said.
Some Republicans argued that the vote was a political stunt. North Carolina Sen. Tom Tillis said he supports separate laws by Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Several Republicans defended Trump’s tariffs and said they wanted to give him time to understand it.
“People want to give the president the opportunity to prove that the new system works,” said Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy.
Texas Sen. John Cornyn said the senator is voting, saying he “believes that he deserves to bring the president’s policies to trial and see if they are successful.”
Democrats say Republicans’ failure to stand up to Trump could have disastrous consequences. “The only thing that Donald Trump’s tariffs have been successful is to increase the chances of a recession and send the market to the tailspin,” Dn.Y. “Today they have to make a choice – stick to Trump or stand in your state.”
The democratic resolution forced votes under laws that allowed them to try to end the national economic emergency used to collect tariffs.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren called it a “fake” emergency that Trump is using to impose his “red light, green lighting tariffs again.”
Tariffs “push our economy off the cliff,” Warren said.
Republicans voted procedurally after the binding vote to ensure Democrats could not raise the resolution again, Sen. John Tune later told reporters. Vice President JD Vance came to the Capitol to confirm that he had broken his tie and rejected the resolution forever.
The Republican president tried to reassure voters that his tariffs would not cause a recession as his administration focuses on China. He told the Cabinet on Wednesday morning that his tariffs meant China is “very difficult because their factories are not doing business.”
Trump said the US really doesn’t need imports from the world’s dominant manufacturers. “Perhaps kids have two dolls instead of 30 dolls,” he said. “So the two dolls would cost them a few dollars than they normally do.”
Published – May 1, 2025 09:30 AM IST
