Senator Wyden's Proposal Seeks to Return Tariff Power to Congress

The Push to Take Tariff Power Away From the White House

President Trump just announced a 50% retaliatory tariff covering a broad set of Canadian goods. He used a rarely invoked trade law from the 1930s to do it. Wyden, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, considered the move excessive.

"Donald Trump has pushed the boundaries of power on trade and tariff policies like no other president we've seen before," Wyden said. So he introduced a bill designed to yank some of that authority back to Congress.

The proposed joint panel would be made up of ten lawmakers - five from the Senate Finance Committee and five from the House Ways and Means Committee. This panel would be allowed a maximum of 30 days to review any proposed tariff and decide whether it should be put to a congressional vote. Wyden put it simply: "Congress must reassert its authority over trade and tariffs to stop any president from being able to unilaterally change the worldwide economy at the click of a button."

Why Wyden Acted Now and Why It May Not Matter

The White House sees things very differently. Spokesman Kush Desai fired back, saying Democrats spent years "twiddling their thumbs while lopsided trade deals and offshoring hollowed out America's middle class and manufacturing base." He added, "If Wyden actually cared about America and Americans, he would work with the President to build on the trillions of investments that he has secured with tariffs, not play foolish political games that accomplish nothing."

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Wyden's legislation is the latest in a series of congressional efforts to curb presidential tariff powers. Previous attempts have failed to gain traction in Republican-led chambers, and this bill faces the same obstacles. The 30-day review period is meant to accelerate congressional action, but with the current political landscape, it remains a symbolic gesture.

The law Trump invoked, the Trade Act of 1930, grants the president unusually broad authority to retaliate against foreign trade practices. Originally designed to protect American industries during the Great Depression, it has been used sparingly over the past century. Wyden's proposal marks the latest attempt by Congress to reclaim a trade power that has steadily shifted to the executive branch over decades.

Historical Context of Tariff Authority Shifts

Trade authority has gradually moved from Congress to the presidency over the past century, beginning with the Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act of 1934. That law allowed the executive to negotiate tariff reductions without direct legislative approval, a shift that accelerated under subsequent trade acts. The Trade Act of 1974 further expanded presidential discretion by permitting retaliatory tariffs in response to unfair trade practices.

In more recent years, a provision called Section 232 - drawn from a 1962 trade law - has been invoked to justify tariffs based on national security concerns. Wyden's bill attempts to reverse this long-term trend by reintroducing a congressional check on any new tariff action, regardless of which legal authority the president invokes.

The Trade Act of 1930, which Trump used for the Canadian tariff, dates to an era when Congress routinely delegated trade powers to the White House in times of economic crisis. Its sparse use over the decades - including during the 1970s oil crisis and the 2002 steel tariffs - underscores how rarely presidents have reached for such sweeping authority. Wyden's bill would require any future invocation of that law to undergo the same 30-day congressional review, effectively forcing the executive to justify its trade actions before they take full effect.

The gradual shift of tariff authority from Congress to the presidency has long been a source of tension. The Depression-era Trade Act of 1930 granted unusually broad powers that later presidents occasionally leveraged, but its infrequent use highlights the rarity of such executive action. Wyden's bill aims to reverse this trend by mandating a congressional review for any tariff, regardless of the legal basis cited.

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