The first signs of an internal US political backlash against Donald Trump’s declaration of a global trade war are starting to emerge amid tanking stock markets worldwide, including on Wall Street, and widespread international criticism of the move.
Hours after Trump unveiled a sweeping panoply of tariffs in an event he dubbed “liberation day,” four Republican senators openly defied him by voting for a Senate resolution from Democrats demanding that the 25% tariffs on Canadian products be reversed.
The resolution lacks the force of law but its support from Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul, both of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, immediately signaled the deep misgivings among some Republicans over Trump’s tariff gambit, which has triggered a global sell-off.
McConnell, the former Senate majority leader, issued a scathing denunciation after Wednesday evening’s vote, calling tariffs “bad policy” that would trigger economic hardship.
“Trade wars with our partners hurt working people most,” he said in a statement. “Tariffs drive up the cost of goods and services. They are a tax on everyday working Americans.”
Further criticism came from Trump’s former vice-president, Mike Pence, who called the tariffs “the largest peacetime tax hike in US history”.
“These tariffs are nearly 10 times the size of those imposed during the Trump-Pence administration, and will cost American families over $3,500 per year,” he posted.
The four Republicans who voted with Democrats did so despite a public appeal from Trump not to support the resolution, tabled by Tim Kaine, a Democratic senator for Virginia who was Hillary Clinton’s running mate in the 2016 presidential election, which Trump won.
The resolution was aimed at curtailing the powers Trump claimed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which he has invoked to tackle the US’s $1.2tn trade deficit and, in the case of Canada, cited the influx of fentanyl through its border.
McConnell pulled no punches in his attack on Trump’s policy.
“Preserving the long-term prosperity of American industry and workers requires working with our allies, not against them. With so much at stake globally, the last thing we need is to pick fights with the very friends with whom we should be working with to protect against China’s predatory and unfair trade practices,” he said.
He added: “At a time when Americans are tightening their belts, we would do well to avoid policies that heap on the pain. We ought to strengthen our friendships abroad, and reinforce our allies as pillars of American prosperity and security.”
Paul, his fellow Kentuckian, said the tariffs were unconstitutional.
“Our constitution was very specific that taxes – tariffs are a tax – taxes originate in the House, come to the Senate and then go the president,” he told reporters. “They don’t just go to the president and no one else. What kind of system would it be if all of our taxes and laws were passed by one person?”
He later told Fox News: “Trade is proportional to wealth. The last 70 years of international trade has been an exponential curve upwards, and the last 70 years of prosperity has been upwards also. We are richer because of trade with Canada, and so is Canada.”
Collins, the senator for Maine, said tariffs would damage lobstering, agriculture and the pulp and paper industries in her state, which borders Canada. She also lambasted imposing tariffs on US allies.
“The fact is, the vast majority of fentanyl in America comes from the southern border [rather than from Canada],” she said on the Senate floor.
“One of my biggest concerns is we should be distinguishing between allies and our adversaries and not treating them the same way.”
Murkowski, a senator from Alaska, said tariffs would also hurt her state and urged Trump to “find a better way to mutually secure our borders and address fentanyl trafficking than by starting a trade war”.
“While not all Canadian trade practices are fair, I’m keenly aware of the negative impacts in store for Alaskan families and businesses should tariffs drive up the costs of essential goods,” she posted on X.
“In Alaska … we share more than 1,538 miles of border with Canada. We are friends, neighbors, partners, and allies when it comes to our economies, our mutual defense, our cultures, and, yes, our trade.”
The outspoken Republican criticism hinted at a wider unease in the party that is mostly being kept muted for fear of repercussions from Trump.
Thom Tillis, a Republican senator for North Carolina, warned about potential “irreparable damage” to his farming constituents before Wednesday’s announcement.
“Anyone who says there may be a little bit of pain before we get things right need to talk to my farmers who are one crop away from bankruptcy,” he told CNN. “They don’t have time. So we’ve got to be crisp on this implementation.”
John Thune, the Republican Senate majority leader, tried to reconcile his concerns with loyalty to Trump. “I’ve got my issue. I represent a state that is very dependent upon exports,” he told reporters. “But I do appreciate the president’s focus on making sure we’re getting better deals, and giving business an incentive to do business here in the United States.”
Such equivocation contrasted with unambiguous condemnation from Democrats, some of whom openly lauded the Republican anti-tariff rebels.
“This is what happens when people speak up,” posted the New Jersey senator, Cory Booker, citing images of news headlines about the four senators’ votes and obliquely referencing his record-breaking Senate floor speech this week denouncing Trump’s policies.
Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate, posted “54% tariffs on China, 10% tariffs on Iran, 0% tariffs on Russia” alongside a puzzled emoji.
Brian Schatz, a Hawaii senator and the Democrats’ chief whip, posted: “I’ve never seen a president ruin the economy on purpose.”
Responding, Chris Murphy, the outspoken Connecticut senator who has emerged as an articulate advocate of the need for a Democratic anti-Trump fightback, wrote: “This is the thing to understand. It’s all on purpose. Creating chaos and crisis.”
