Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) will introduce legislation aimed at nullifying President Trump’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, a spokesman for the senator confirmed to The Daily Beast. The reaction highlights congressional Republicans’ frustrations with the president over the tariffs, which they warn could prompt an unwinnable trade war. “Congress cannot be complicit as the administration courts economic disaster,” Flake said. Republicans have also expressed concern that the tariffs could undermine their economic arguments to voters heading into the midterm elections later this year, especially on the heels of the GOP’s tax legislation. Flake acknowledged to The Daily Beast earlier this week that votes on trade policy are “tough” in Congress, adding: “Any trade deal before Congress will get politicized. It’ll be a shirts vs. skins kind of exercise.” It would take 67 votes in the Senate to override a presidential veto. —Andrew Desiderio
