Trump’s Emergency Declaration on Brazil Is a Shameless Power Grab
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Wednesday, President Trump signed an executive order that levies 50% tariffs on products from Brazil beginning on August 6, claiming a “national emergency” based on an ongoing criminal case against former Brazilian President Bolsonaro and Brazil’s regulation of the digital ecosystem.
Trump has expressed strong affinity with right-wing Bolsonaro, and in a July 9 letter, which incorrectly claimed that the U.S. has a trade deficit with Brazil, he referred to the charges against Bolsonaro for orchestrating a coup attempt as a “witch hunt,” similar to the cases against Trump related to the January 6th insurrection.
Melinda St. Louis, Global Trade Watch Director at Public Citizen, issued the following statement:
“It’s the oldest trick in the authoritarian playbook – to declare a national emergency to increase your power. But it’s hard to fathom a flimsier justification for a U.S. national emergency than today’s executive order on Brazil, a country which obviously poses no material threat to U.S. national security.
“Trump’s order sets a horrifying precedent that literally any domestic judicial action or democratically enacted policy set by another country could somehow justify a U.S. national emergency and bestow the president with powers far beyond what the Constitution provides.
“The good news for people who like coffee, chocolate, and other imports from Brazil is that these tariffs are unlikely to be in effect long enough to significantly increase prices. When this inappropriate use of tariffs is inevitably thrown out in the courts, the only lasting damage will be to the United States’ international reputation.”
For further reading, including the truth about the commonsense Big Tech regulations that Trump describes as “tyrannical,” see Trump’s Bizarre, Authoritarian, Big, Tech-Friendly Tariffs on Brazil.