Before the vote, Welch slammed Trump’s reckless trade war and called on Congress to reassert its authority on trade policy
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, today voted in favor of a bipartisan resolution to end President Trump’s reckless tariffs on Canadian imports—a tax on Vermont businesses and manufacturers, farmers, and families. The resolution, led by Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and cosponsored by Senator Welch, challenges President Trump’s tariffs on billions of dollars of goods from Canada. The measure passed out of the Senate Wednesday evening.
The Senators’ resolution would terminate the February 1 emergency declaration that President Trump used to launch his trade war with Canada and would eliminate many of the tariffs on Canadian imports implemented as a result.
“I urge all of us in the Senate to reassert our own authority, under Article I—which gives to the Congress the power to tax, the power to impose tariffs or not—and to not have us continue to relinquish the authority and responsibility we have, as the United States Senate, to an Executive. This is our responsibility, and part of that reason is because we are close to people who are affected by these policies,” said Senator Welch. “It is a shirking of responsibility for the United States Senate to essentially cede that authority to a President, particularly when we’re seeing…the harmful impacts on folks in our states—businesses in our states, farmers and ranchers in our states—that are working hard to try to pull things together and keep their businesses going, our economy going, and contributing to the well-being of our country.
“I call on the President to reconsider what damages these tariffs are doing. I call on our United States Senate to reassert its authority and be the decider of what tariff policy shall be in this country.”
The tariffs were imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), an unprecedented use of the nearly 50-year-old statute. Next week, the Supreme Court will hear a case on the President’s authority to impose tariffs under IEEPA.
Watch Senator Welch’s full remarks from the Senate floor below:
In his remarks, Senator Welch highlighted that Canada is the largest trading partner for 34 U.S. states, including Vermont. In 2024 alone, trade with Canada accounted for 35% of Vermont’s exports, 67% of imports, and 56% of its total trade. One in four businesses in Vermont relies on trade with Canada.
The Senate’s vote comes shortly after newly released inflation data showed that consumer prices rose in September at their fastest pace in eight months. The IEEPA tariffs are the largest tax increase on American families in recent history. Since Trump launched his trade war with Canada, exports of U.S. distilled spirits declined by about 85%, and tourism from Canada to the U.S. fell by nearly 34%. Public opinion surveys have overwhelmingly demonstrated that the American people do not support Trump’s trade wars. According to a recent survey by Public First, 43% of American adults opposed applying tariffs to Canada.
In addition to Senators Welch and Kaine, the bipartisan resolution was cosponsored by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Angus King (I-Maine), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
Senator Welch is a cosponsor of a bipartisan resolution to repeal the tariffs on Canada, a bipartisan bill to restore congressional tariff authority, a bill to restrict the executive branch’s authority to impose tariffs through the IEEPA, and a bill to exempt small businesses from the April 2nd global tariff Executive Order. Senator Welch also led a bipartisan resolution to end President Trump’s ruinous global tariffs in April.
In May, Senator Welch joined a bipartisan delegation and traveled to Ottawa to meet with Canadian dignitaries, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, to discuss bipartisan support for a U.S.-Canada partnership and their commitment to a strong trading relationship between the United States and Canada. The Senator has hosted roundtables in Stowe, Newport, St. Albans, Manchester, and virtually to hear concerns and first-hand stories from Vermont and Canadian leaders impacted by the trade war.
Read and download the full text of the resolution.
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