Paul Ryan comes out against Trump tariffs

WASHINGTON — In a rare break with the White House, Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan came out Monday against President Trump’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Ryan’s office warned that the punitive measures could spark a “trade war” that undermines benefits from the GOP’s recent tax overhaul.

“We are extremely worried about the consequences of a trade war and are urging the White House to not advance with this plan,” Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong said in a statement. “The new tax reform law has boosted the economy, and we certainly don’t want to jeopardize those gains.”

A GOP source said Republican congressional leaders “won’t rule out potential action down the line.” The source declined to flesh out what kind of response could be in the making, saying, “We are focused on convincing him not to do the tariffs in the first place.”

Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the power to “regulate Commerce with foreign Nations” and “to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.” But in practice, lawmakers have granted the president broad powers to manage trade. It’s unclear whether the political appetite exists in Congress to take any meaningful action.

 Source : Yahoo