Trump’s Meat Ax Trade Initiative Addresses a Serious Issue but . . .

Richard Samans face

By Rick Samans

Taken at face value, the announced approach is unconstitutional and administratively unworkable — in addition to running the risk of huge collateral damage at home and abroad. Congress needs to be brought into the equation for both procedural and substantive reasons.

Industrial tariff disparities and the related overuse of WTO special and differential treatment by countries that have long since industrialized constitute a serious issue. But see these recommended reads for why the Administration’s blunderbuss approach is unconstitutional by any reasonable reading of the statutes he is considering invoking and administratively unworkable based on any realistic understanding of how tariffs are administered by the responsible US agencies.

Unconstitutional (Congress has not previously delegated this kind of authority to the Executive Branch, so if the President wants to act in this manner he needs to seek Congressional approval of legislation authorizing it):

https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-case-against-ieepa-tariffs

And administratively unworkable:

https://www.cfr.org/article/donald-trump-wants-reciprocity-trade-heres-closer-look