NORFOLK, Va. — President Donald Trump has announced his tariff plan for various countries on Wednesday afternoon, but there is now an effort to block these tariffs from taking effect on Canadian products.
Part of the rationale from the bill’s supporters is that they argue there is not a fentanyl crisis at the northern border akin to that at the southern border, and therefore, they believe tariffs should not be imposed against Canada.
In Virginia, exports to Canada accounted for 15 percent of the export market, with products such as cars and transportation equipment heading north, according to Sen. Mark Warner's office.
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The proposed legislation seeks to end the emergency declaration that President Trump used to implement the tariffs.
Warner, who is set to vote in favor of the bill, along with Sen. Tim Kaine, noted that the Senate requires 51 votes for the measure to pass and indicated he believes there may be some Republican support.
"I know it'll be the case if we've got any liquor distributors in Hampton Roads, their market to Canada is going to basically disappear," Warner said. "But think about peanuts. Southeastern Virginia has a lot of peanut farms; Canada is the second biggest buyer of Virginia peanuts. Well, you put a big tariff on that, and that's going to go away."
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In response, President Trump took to Truth Social to urge Republican senators not to support the bill, calling it a "ploy of the Dems to show and expose the weakness of certain Republicans." The vote is expected to take place later Wednesday evening.
However, the proposed legislation appears to be largely symbolic, as it is not anticipated that the GOP-controlled House would take it up, and President Trump has stated he would not sign it into law.
