OAN Staff James Meyers
12:37 PM – Thursday, May 1, 2025
An effort by Senate Democrats to overturn President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff policy fell short on Wednesday.
In a 49 to 49 vote, all but three Republicans stood united, opposing the new measure. Vice President JD Vance cast the tie-breaking vote to block the Democrat opposition.
Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) opted out of the vote.
“Senator Whitehouse is on his way back from representing the United States at the Our Ocean summit, where he was the sole American official,” a spokesperson for the Senator said in a statement detailing his absence. “The Senator expressed America’s continued support for the Blue Economy, climate solutions, fisheries, and maritime security, even as the Trump administration cedes leadership on the oceans to the rest of the world.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) then moved to ensure that those opposing the tariffs would not be able to bring the resolution back up at another time — forcing him to bring in Vance to settle the vote.
This was the second time that Vance has used his tie-breaking power since being in the position.
Nevertheless, the tariff vote was widely regarded as a “symbolic” show of Democrat unity, with the understanding that it would not have succeeded in a Republican-controlled House anyway.
The vote comes as the 47th president has placed a baseline tariff of 10% on almost all U.S. trading partners. He has also imposed 25% tariffs on all aluminum, steel, and many items from Mexico and Canada — while hitting China with a 145% tariff.
Meanwhile, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) expressed on Wednesday that it is not appropriate for Congress to “jump in” only a few weeks into the Trump administration’s tariff policy.
“If it gets close to where the imbalance is there, then we would step in,” Johnson said, while adding that the first step would be for him to call the president to discuss the concerns. “But right now I think ultimately this policy is going to achieve the desired outcome and it’s going to be good for the country, and so we’re applauding that.”
Additionally, Thune told reporters on Wednesday that “the tariff issue is one that’s probably going to take some time to realize the results and the benefits from.”
“Overall, the things we’re going to be doing to support a healthy economy, on taxes and regulations and energy, are going to have a positive impact long term,” Thune said. “The tariff issue is something that’s, like I said, it’s an open question, but we’re giving them some space to negotiate and see if they can get some good deals.”
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