A small group of Republican senators delivered a rare legislative rebuke to President Donald Trump’s far-reaching trade tariffs, breaking ranks to side with Democrats in a vote against his global trade agenda.
Four Republicans — Susan Collins of Maine, Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — joined Democrats in approving a resolution, 51–47, to overturn the base-level tariffs imposed on more than 100 nations through Trump’s executive order.
It marked the third time this week that Republicans have crossed party lines on trade, having previously supported measures to end tariffs targeting Brazil and Canada.
Such open defiance of Trump remains rare within the GOP during his second term. Still, despite the Senate’s pushback, similar action in the House of Representatives appears unlikely. House Republicans earlier this year adopted a rule preventing any tariff-related resolutions from reaching the floor for a vote.
The Senate’s vote effectively nullifies the so-called “reciprocal” tariffs, which Trump argued were meant to level global trade. Lawmakers from both parties, however, framed the move as a response to executive overreach.
“This is about restoring Congress’s constitutional authority over trade,” said Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia, adding that the largely symbolic vote should “get the president’s attention.”
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