US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer appeared before Congress this week in an attempt to make the administration’s case on tariffs, but the testimony instead often put on display the many unanswered questions about Trump’s plans that seem to confuse even GOP lawmakers — not to mention the markets.
Those questions escalated Wednesday afternoon when President Trump stunned everyone yet again by announcing he would authorize a 90-day pause on his reciprocal tariff plans while keeping in place the 10% duties on most of the world that went into effect last weekend.
The news broke just as Greer’s two days of testimony were winding down, with one lawmaker reading the news to the room off his phone. A Democrat — Tom Suozzi of New York — then accused the president of having “pulled the rug” out from under Greer.
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Greer confirmed the pause but declined to elaborate, repeating the message he had been offering for days that China was the focus as it had taken its “own path.”
It was a chaotic, but perhaps fitting, coda to two days of testimony before Senate and House committees, as Republican lawmakers expressed skepticism amid the turmoil from Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff plans that continue to reverberate through America’s political and economic system.
“Whose throat do I get to choke if this proves to be wrong?” Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina asked Tuesday in one memorable moment about who is ultimately responsible for the policy.
Trade Representative Jamieson Greer speaks to Senator Ron Johnson before the start of a Senate Finance Committee hearing. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) ·BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI via Getty Images
It was just one of many issues raised even as the GOP lawmakers often made sure to note that they agreed with Trump that the global trading system was unbalanced.
“I support the ultimate goal; I’m just wondering if the sequencing has been done with the details that are necessary to make it successful.” added Republican David Schweikert of Arizona as some of the skeptical questioning continued Wednesday before House lawmakers.
The concerns included Trump downplaying possible inflationary effects, his measuring of success solely around trade deficits, the ruling out of exclusions, whether farmers would be hurt, and the logic of imposing tariffs before talks with countries began.
“I hope you and the president are very sensitive to companies potentially going bankrupt by these actions,” Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said at one point as he wondered aloud about what Trump “is trying to accomplish here.”
Read more: What Trump’s tariffs mean for the economy and your wallet
It was a GOP push that Greer did his best to answer and was also clearly on Trump’s mind this week. In one recent post, the president urged his party not to become “Panicans,” and the president then referred to market unrest as a reason for his Wednesday afternoon pivot, saying, “They were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid.”
Plenty of other GOP lawmakers staunchly defended Trump’s trade approach while Democrats offered even more withering criticism.
Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon told Greer that our economy is in “purgatory” before announcing a bill to block the tariffs announced last week. Sen. Elizabeth Warren was another questioner who signed on to Wyden’s bill and told Yahoo Finance that Trump has launched “the dumbest trade war in history.”
Wyden and Warren unveiled their bill Tuesday with Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky as one of the co-signers. The bill is set to take the form of a privileged resolution, meaning it is expected to receive a full Senate vote in the weeks ahead.
That bill also joins a second bipartisan bill that has been gaining steam in recent days, which would require presidential tariffs to be approved by Congress or expire in 60 days.
Though Republican questioning of Greer this week “generally stopped short of direct condemnation,” according to Ed Mills of Raymond James, it still raised an array of issues.
Multiple Republicans asked about Trump’s intense concern with trade deficits — a focus that Greer echoed in his testimony and was the sole factor in setting the new rates that came into effect Wednesday.
Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma pushed back on the notion that trade deficits are the most important, saying “most countries in the world are never going to buy as much as we’re purchasing,”
Another issue was with Trump’s approach of undertaking dozens of negotiations with countries simultaneously,
Florida Republican Vern Buchanan opened the second day of testimony by questioning Greer on that topic, noting that previous trade deals have taken years to negotiate.
“Hopefully that works out,” the lawmaker offered after Greer’s response, suggesting Congress needed a bigger role. After Wednesday’s news of a 90-day reprieve broke, Buchanan praised Trump online for his “decisive action.”
Another line of critique was around the Trump team’s dismissal of concerns that the historic duties could lead to inflation.
Other questioners wanted to know whether there were clear measures of success. Yet others echoed Democratic concerns that Trump had overstepped his authority by declaring a national economic emergency to impose his tariffs quickly and get around Congress.
President Donald Trump commented on tariffs during a photo opportunity with autoracing officials on April 9. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) ·SAUL LOEB via Getty Images
“The situation is urgent,” Greer often responded.
“This national emergency declaration and tariff action is the most significant change in US trade policy since we allowed China to join the World Trade Organization,” he said at another point.
While the GOP critiques were often combined with support for Trump in other areas and couched in the niceties of Capitol Hill discourse, it was yet another piece of evidence that Trump is facing deep discord with members of his own party over a trade approach that has rattled markets.
Political observers increasingly expect it could become an albatross for Republicans as election season nears next year.
But in the short term, it’s unclear to what extent worried lawmakers may be able to force Trump’s hand.
While senators in particular may be able to force a vote in the coming days and weeks, House Speaker Mike Johnson has remained firmly loyal to Trump and suggested to reporters this week he would block a vote, saying, “I think you’ve got to give the president the latitude.”
But Senator Tillis — who will face voters next year in North Carolina — set a deadline and has said Trump probably has until next February to fix the economy if his party hopes to avoid punishment at the polls.
But even he sounded unsure, asking of his potential voters, “I’m just trying to figure out if they’re going to feel good about this,” and adding to Greer, “I wish you well, but I am skeptical.”
This post has been updated.
Ben Werschkul is a Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.
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