Senate Republicans Block Democratic Bid to Halt Trump’s Global Tariffs in Narrow Vote

On April 30, Senate Republicans narrowly defeated a Democratic resolution aimed at blocking President Donald Trump’s recently announced global tariffs, delivering a modest win for the president amid widespread skepticism from both parties over his trade policies.

An article from AP explained that the resolution failed on a 49-49 vote, falling short of the majority needed for passage due in part to the absence of two key senators — Republican Mitch McConnell and Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse. The vote came just weeks after the Senate had narrowly passed a similar measure to curb Trump’s authority to impose tariffs on Canadian imports.

The article said, “Wary of a rebuke to Trump, GOP leaders encouraged their conference not to vote for the resolution, even as many of them remain unconvinced about the tariffs. Vice President JD Vance attended a Senate GOP luncheon Tuesday with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who assured senators that the administration is making progress toward trade deals with individual countries.”