U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Thomas Donohue issued a rare public warning to the administration Wednesday, saying the risks of a trade war are rising and telling President Trump not to follow through with tariffs on steel and aluminum.
Donohue said he is “is very concerned about the increasing prospects of a trade war.”
Regarding Trump’s proposed worldwide tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, Donohue said they would “directly harm American manufacturers, provoke widespread retaliation from our trading partners, and leave virtually untouched the true problem of Chinese steel and aluminum overcapacity.”
“Alienating our strongest global allies amid high-stakes trade negotiations is not the path to long-term American leadership,” he added.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said earlier Wednesday the administration is on pace to announce details regarding the tariffs by the end of this week.
Businesses and congressional Republicans are trying to dissuade Trump from imposing the tariffs, which he has the power to do for national security purposes under a decades-old law.
Failing that, some Republicans hope to at least get Trump to add exceptions to the tariffs for trading partners that haven’t been found to engage in unfair practices, including Canada and Mexico.
