Trump tariffs on Canada face House rejection in bipartisan vote

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted Wednesday to revoke President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada, with six GOP lawmakers joining Democrats in what amounted to a largely symbolic challenge to the administration’s trade policy.

The joint resolution was passed by a vote of 219-211. Only one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, voted against the measure. Introduced by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., the resolution now moves to the Senate for consideration, according to US media.

Ahead of the vote, Trump warned that Republicans who break with him on tariffs would face political consequences.

“Any Republican, in the House or the Senate, that votes against TARIFFS will seriously suffer the consequences come Election time, and that includes Primaries!” Trump wrote on Truth Social around the time the House cast its ballots.

The six House Republicans who supported the resolution were Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Kevin Kiley of California, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Dan Newhouse of Washington, Jeff Hurd of Colorado and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.

However, not all of them face immediate electoral risk. Bacon and Newhouse are not running for re-election, and Trump has already endorsed a primary challenger to Massie.

Hurd defended his decision in a post on February 11, warning about the broader implications of expanding executive authority.

"If we normalise broad emergency trade powers today, we should expect that a future president—of either party—will rely on the same authority in ways many of us would strongly oppose," he wrote. "My responsibility is to defend the separation of powers regardless of political convenience."

Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian goods last year after invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Over the past year, he has threatened varying tariff levels tied to specific political demands. Most recently, he warned that he would impose a 100% tariff on Canadian imports if Canada proceeded with a trade agreement with China.

Tariffs have become a central pillar of Trump’s second-term agenda. He has argued that they strengthen domestic manufacturing and serve broader objectives, including national security.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said he was “disappointed” with Wednesday’s vote but downplayed its practical impact, noting that Trump retains veto authority.

“The president has veto power, and there’s not a two-thirds majority in both chambers to override the veto, so it’s not going to change the policy in the end anyway," Johnson said. "I think this is a fruitless exercise and a pointless one.”

Last year, House Republicans passed a measure preventing the chamber from moving to cancel the president’s tariffs. That restriction expired at the end of January. On Tuesday night, Republicans attempted — unsuccessfully — to extend the ban through late July.

The failed extension cleared the way for Wednesday’s vote on terminating the Canada tariffs.

Three Republicans — Massie, Kiley and Bacon — voted against extending the prohibition on Tuesday. Explaining his position on X, Bacon emphasised Congress’s constitutional authority over trade policy.

“Congress needs to be able to debate on tariffs,” Bacon wrote. “Article I of the Constitution places authority over taxes and tariffs with Congress for a reason, but for too long, we have handed that authority to the executive branch."

By Tamilla Hasanova