Bloomberg reported today that Trump's threats were ineffective, and the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution to end Trump's tariffs on Canada with 219 votes in favor and 210 votes against. Six Republican lawmakers defected to join the Democrats, highlighting that Trump's control over the House Republicans is weakening.
Before the vote, Trump said that any Republican who opposed him on the tariff issue would face political consequences in the election.
"Any Republican who votes against me on tariffs — whether in the House or the Senate — will face serious consequences at the polls, including in primary elections!" Trump wrote. "Tariffs have brought economic and national security benefits, and no Republican should be responsible for undermining this advantage."
The vote was also a blow to House Speaker Johnson. As a key ally of Trump, he had blocked all tariff-related bills from entering the House agenda for months. However, on Tuesday, three Republican lawmakers joined the Democrats to override his blockade of the agenda.
The Republican-controlled Senate also recently voted to abandon tariffs on Brazil and other emergency global tariffs, including those on Canada.
However, since the resolution must be signed by the president to take effect, or be overridden after the president's veto with sufficient votes, it is unlikely that the legislative efforts will force Trump to abandon his signature economic policy.
Nevertheless, these votes are essentially applying political pressure on Trump before the midterm elections, forcing Republican lawmakers in swing districts affected by tariffs to consider whether they should distance themselves from the president on key issues.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1856911623511241/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.