Democrats hand Trump one power they spent years fighting

Key Points:

• Senate Democrats, despite previously criticizing President Trump's use of tariffs, largely voted to grant him limited tariff authority as part of a sanctions package targeting Russia, with only nine Democrats and one Republican opposing it.
• The new authority allows Trump to impose tariffs up to 500% on Russian imports and up to 100% on the top five countries purchasing Russian energy, including China and India, aiming to pressure Russia amid its war in Ukraine.
• Some Democrats, including Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, expressed concern that granting this authority could lead to abuse and higher costs for American consumers, citing Trump's past tariff actions.
• Sen. Raphael Warnock secured assurances that the tariff powers would be narrowly applied to the top five energy trading partners with Russia, emphasizing the need to balance punishing Putin while limiting potential overreach by the president.
• Critics like Sen. Rand Paul warned that tariffs act as a tax on Americans and cautioned against giving the administration broad trade powers, while supporters believe courts will restrain any illegal expansion of the tariff authority.