Conservative Groups Tell Senate Members to Reform Section 232 Law
Ten conservative groups, including Americans for Prosperity, the National Taxpayers Union and FreedomWorks, are asking the Senate Finance Committee to introduce a Section 232 reform bill closer to the Sen. Pat Toomey version than to the Sen. Rob Portman version. The two Republicans diverge on whether Congress could stop the imposition of national security tariffs before they start, or only reject tariffs once in place.
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Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley's staff has been working on a compromise bill for months, and Grassley said it would come after the August recess. The draft so far would allow tariffs to go into effect, but would not allow them to continue after a certain period without congressional approval.
The letter opposes such an approach. "It is vital ... that any such [reform] effort requires Congress to first approve such measures, such as is included in the bipartisan Bicameral Congressional Trade Authority Act introduced by Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.)," the groups said. "By contrast, proposals that simply allow Congress to overturn an executive imposition would make such a reform essentially meaningless, by being subject to a Presidential veto requiring 67 Senate votes to overturn."