Sen. Pat Toomey says Trump trade policies have potential to cause harm in Pennsylvania
Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania, says that President Trump's tariff policies on imported goods from U.S. allies are "going to be harmful" to his home state as tensions between the U.S. and trading partners like Canada, Europe and Mexico continue to raise concerns over a possible trade war escalating.
"So far this trade war, if it is that -- and it seems to be heading that way -- has been of a modest scale. It hasn't done great damage yet but it has the potential to do that," Toomey said on "Face the Nation" on Sunday.
Toomey said that he doesn't want to see a trade war undo a "fantastic economy" and potentially "limit the ability of Pennsylvanians and Americans generally to buy and sell goods and services with our neighbors and allies which is, after all, who this is targeting."
Transcript: Sen. Pat Toomey on "Face the Nation," July 1, 2018
When asked if he would consider withholding his vote on Mr. Trump's next Supreme Court pick in order to force a vote on giving Congress more control over the president's ability to put the tariffs in place, Toomey said such a move "won't be necessary."
"I do want to have a vote to restore to Congress its constitutional responsibility to have the final say on the imposition of tariffs, especially when it's national security that's invoked as the rationale. But there is uniform, I believe, uniform Republican Senate support for us allowing that debate, allowing that vote," said Toomey.
As for when such a vote could take place, Toomey said, "Sen. [Mitch] McConnell and my Republican colleagues are not going to attempt to block the ability to have that vote. And we'll see where the votes are. We don't know that yet, but I think we should find out."
