Five Republicans Join Democrats To Terminate Trump’s Brazil Tariffs

Five Senate Republicans joined their Democratic colleagues in ending President Donald Trump’s emergency powers Tuesday that underpin his tariffs on Brazil, over the objections of Vice President JD Vance, who urged his fellow Republicans to support the president’s trade agenda.

Senators voted 52-48 on the resolution to block the president’s tariffs on Brazil, with all Democratic lawmakers voting in favor of the measure. The resolution is one of three measures introduced by a handful of Democratic senators and Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul seeking to end the president’s tariffs on Brazil and Canada, as well as 10% global tariffs imposed on many of the United States’ trading partners. (RELATED: It Turns Out Americans Plan to Spend Normally During the Holidays, Despite Media Fears About Tariffs)

Senate Democrats and Paul are expected to force a vote on reversing the Canadian and universal tariffs later this week. The trio of resolutions requires only a simple majority vote to pass, meaning a handful of Republican “yes” votes are needed to reverse part of Trump’s tariff agenda.

These votes, however, are largely symbolic since House Speaker Mike Johnson is not expected to adopt the resolutions.

“Brazil had a trade surplus, and the impetus behind that appears to be a disagreement with a legal process,” North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, one of five Republicans who supported the resolution, told reporters Tuesday. “I just don’t think that’s a solid basis for using commercial leverage.”

Asked whether the president had exceeded his authority in implementing the tariffs, Tillis replied: “I don’t think there’s a rational basis for that. »

Paul, a staunch supporter of free trade, said Tuesday that Trump’s tariffs were “unconstitutional” and argued that the national emergency declaration to impose tariffs on Brazil was “artificial.”

“The Senate is obligated to act because someone in our country wants to raise taxes without the approval of the Senate, without the approval of the House, without the approval of the Constitution,” Paul told the Senate before the vote.

Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also crossed party lines to end Trump’s tariffs on Brazil.

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 28: U.S. Vice President JD Vance leaves after attending the Senate Republican weekly policy luncheon on day 28 of the federal government shutdown at the U.S. Capitol October 28, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Vance implored Senate Republicans to vote against resolutions to block the president’s tariffs on Brazil, Canada and other countries.

“What I have said to my Republican colleagues, recognizing that there is diversity of opinion on this, is that the tariffs give us the opportunity to put American workers first,” Vance told reporters after meeting with Senate Republicans for a working lunch Tuesday. “They force American industry to reinvest in the United States of America rather than in a foreign country. They also provide incredible leverage for the President of the United States in negotiating these foreign trade deals.”

“If you look at what we’re doing in Asia, if you look at all the trade deals, the trade barriers that have been dropped by foreign countries on American consumers, it’s happening because the President of the United States has been willing to use tariffs to provide better conditions for American workers and farmers,” Mr. Vance continued. “To vote against this is to deprive the President of the United States of this incredible leverage. I think it’s a huge mistake, and I know that most people here agree with me.”

The Trump administration imposed an additional 40% customs duty on Brazilian goods in July, bringing the total duty rate on Brazil to 50%. Trump justified his national emergency declaration by arguing that several of the country’s policies and the recent criminal prosecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro pose a threat to the U.S. economy and national security.

“Recently, members of the Brazilian government have taken unprecedented steps to tyrannically and arbitrarily coerce U.S. companies to censor political speech, remove users from their platform, provide sensitive data about U.S. users, or change their content moderation policies, under penalty of extraordinary fines, criminal prosecution, asset freezes, or complete exclusion from the Brazilian market,” the president said in July. Executive Order states in part.

Senate Democrats criticized the president’s tariffs on Brazil in a predictable move.

“We have a surplus with Brazil. They buy a lot more American products than we buy theirs, and even with the amount of Brazilian coffee we buy, we still earn a surplus with Brazil,” Virginia Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine said Tuesday. “So it makes no sense to impose tariffs on Brazil, and it’s just done to support a president’s friend, the same way the president gives $20 billion to Argentina to help a friend and his president.”

Caden Olson contributed to this report.

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