NYT: Trump tariff power dispute stalls bipartisan Russia sanctions bill

A dispute between President Donald Trump and Democrats in Congress over presidential tariff powers has become the main obstacle to bipartisan legislation that would impose sweeping new sanctions on Russia, The New York Times reports.

The legislation, originally championed by Senator Lindsey Graham before his death, is intended to increase economic pressure on Moscow by targeting countries that continue to purchase Russian energy exports. However, negotiations have stalled over a provision that would give the president broad discretion to impose tariffs on those countries.

At the centre of the debate is Section 113 of the bill, which would authorise — but not require — the president to impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on imports from countries that knowingly purchase Russian crude oil, petroleum products, natural gas, or uranium. The provision would also allow the president to suspend or remove those tariffs at his discretion.

Democrats argue that the clause grants the White House excessive authority over trade policy. They contend that Congress, under the U.S. Constitution, has primary responsibility for regulating international commerce and warn that the proposal would further expand executive powers at a time when they believe the administration has already exceeded its authority on tariffs.

Representative Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, and Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said they could not support legislation that "hands President Trump a blank check to continue his chaotic tariff agenda."

Republicans, however, insist that the provision is essential to ensuring the bill becomes law. They argue that the measure is narrowly focused on countries that continue to finance Russia's war effort by purchasing its energy exports and maintain that President Trump would veto the legislation if the discretionary tariff authority were removed.

By Sabina Mammadli