The Loophole That Let Trump Tariff 60 Countries Without Congress’s Approval

(SeaPRwire) –

By: Gavin Thorne
Barry Appleton’s line about side doors and unlatched windows isn’t just a colorful turn of phrase. It’s the unvarnished truth behind the Trump administration’s latest round of tariffs. The move lets the president lock in permanent import taxes without ever asking Congress for approval. This isn’t a new tactic for this administration, either. They’ve used the same legal framework before to target Chinese imports and shipbuilding practices. The real goal here isn’t forced labor enforcement. It’s avoiding legislative gridlock that has stymied past tariff efforts on Capitol Hill.
The new tariffs target 60 countries, covering 99% of all U.S. imports. They replace temporary 10% global tariffs that expired recently. Those temporary tariffs themselves swapped a prior set struck down by the Supreme Court in February. The U.S. says the countries fail to enforce forced labor import bans, but set either 10% or 12.5% rates without explaining how it picked those numbers. The administration spent four months investigating, but has shared almost no details on its findings. Affected nations have already pushed back, calling the claims unfounded and arbitrary.
The legal backbone here is Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act. The law lets the president levy sanctions against nations seen as using unjustifiable trade practices. The key draw of the law is that it skips congressional approval entirely for long-term tariff measures. During their first term, the administration used Section 301 to impose sweeping tariffs on Chinese goods over tech dominance disputes. The U.S. has also cited the clause to challenge Chinese shipbuilding practices in recent months.
Critics say there is almost no hard evidence to back up the forced labor claims. Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute called the push laughable, pointing to European nations, Norway, and Switzerland as countries that clearly enforce forced labor bans. Even if a nation did fix its policies, it would have to prove compliance to Washington’s exacting standards to have the tariffs lifted. Patrick Childress, a former U.S. trade official, says there is no short-term path for any country to get relief from these new duties. The USTR says it held public hearings and collected 2,100 public comments, but refused to share details of its private talks with target nations.
Both foreign governments and domestic industries have rejected the administration’s framing. Brazil called the tariffs arbitrary and unjustified, accusing the U.S. of manipulating human rights issues for trade gain. Australia’s trade minister also pushed back, noting his country takes modern slavery issues extremely seriously. The U.S. textile industry is particularly upset about a carveout that exempts imports from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Those exemptions apply only to nations that import U.S. cotton and textiles, a perk no other industry can access. The National Council of Textile Organizations notes the domestic sector employs 453,000 workers and has lost 41 plants in the last two years.
Congress will not act fast enough to block this executive overreach before the tariffs take full effect.
Author bio: Gavin Thorne, an investigative journalist based in Washington, D.C., tracking special interests and legislative affairs for national outlets.