Business Groups Line Up Behind Limits to Trump's Tariff Powers

  • Congress would have 60 days to approve some proposed duties
  • Leading trade groups and coalitions backing new legislation

Aluminum ingots sit stacked in a warehouse at the Port of New Orleans.

Photographer: Alex Flynn/Bloomberg
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After failing to stop Donald Trump from unleashing tariffs on national security grounds, the U.S. business community is lining up behind efforts to limit his power to impose them.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Business Roundtable, and two coalitions with dozens of trade associations are backing legislation to require congressional approval before a president imposes such national-security tariffs. Trump used the authority in 2018 to slap duties on steel and aluminum imports, and he’s been threatening for months to do the same with foreign-made vehicles and parts.