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Corker files amendment limiting Trump’s tariff power

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., is shown standing while listening as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo answers questions from the panel just after President Donald Trump canceled the June 12 summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, citing the "tremendous anger and open hostility" in a recent statement from North Korea, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 24, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., is shown standing while listening as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo answers questions from the panel just after President Donald Trump canceled the June 12 summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, citing the "tremendous anger and open hostility" in a recent statement from North Korea, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 24, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., is shown standing while listening as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo answers questions from the panel just after President Donald Trump canceled the June 12 summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, citing the "tremendous anger and open hostility" in a recent statement from North Korea, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 24, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

By Andy Sher 5 min read

NASHVILLE – U.S. Sen. Bob Corker on Thursday filed his proposal to require congressional approval for President Donald Trump’s tariffs in the form of an amendment to a must-pass defense appropriation bill.

The Tennessee Republican now is “calling for an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor,” Corker spokeswoman Micah Johnson said.

Corker, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and a bipartisan coalition of 11 other senators worried about Trump’s already-announced tariffs on steel and aluminum introduced the legislation as a bill on Wednesday. U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., is among the co-sponsors.

Trump himself called Corker on Wednesday in an unsuccessful effort to dissuade him from introducing the bill.

Corker and other lawmakers are concerned about Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum exported by Canada, Mexico and the European Union, as well as retaliatory tariffs levied by all three against the U.S., saying they pose dangers to industrial and agricultural activity across the U.S.