Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs expose GOP rift - Entrepreneur Generations

President Trump's planned steel and aluminum tariffs have exposed a deep rift in the GOP that will be difficult to bridge. It wasn't hard to see it coming: Congressional Republicans largely supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which Trump jettisoned immediately upon taking office.

But Trump's protectionist philosophy and his popularity with Republican voters helped bring them over to his side of the debate. "During the campaign, a fascinating shift happened in Republican circles, one that gives Trump leverage in this intraparty debate on tariffs. The GOP base became openly wary of trade. And Republicans probably have Trump to thank for that shift," Amber Phillips writes for The Washington Post.


Many Republican leaders fear the tariffs will trigger a trade war with not just China, but other allies like Canada, Mexico and Brazil. China is already threatening a trade war over U.S. sorghum and soybean exports in the wake of Trump's solar panel tariffs. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) said "Let's be clear: The President is proposing a massive tax increase on American families. Protectionism is weak, not strong. You'd expect a policy this bad from a leftist administration, not a supposedly Republican one."




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