Trump had threatened to impose 5% import duties on Mexican products starting Monday, with the levies set to rise each month to a potential peak of 25% in October if Mexico didn’t stem the flow of illegal migrants to the U.S. to the president’s satisfaction. There was even talk of a vote to curtail Trump’s power to levy tariffs that prompted the president to suggest senators don’t understand tariffs and they would be “foolish” to oppose him. Crossing the president, whose popularity with Republican voters is very high, carries a definite risk for the party’s lawmakers, including facing primary challengers more aligned with Trump the next time they’re up for re-election.
