President Joe Biden is considering lifting some tariffs on Chinese goods in an effort to tame record-high inflation rates.
According to The Wall Street Journal, a decision by Biden could be announced as soon as this week.
“People familiar with the situation say what comes next has been pending with Mr. Biden in recent weeks and that he could announce his decision this week. It could include a pause on tariffs on consumer goods such as clothing and school supplies, as well as launching a broad framework to allow importers to request tariff waivers,” the Journal reported.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said last month that the president has personally asked her team to look at the option of lifting some tariffs on China that were put into place by former President Donald Trump.
“We are looking at it. In fact, the president has asked us on his team to analyze that. And so we are in the process of doing that for him and he will have to make that decision,” Raimondo told CNN in an interview.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo are reportedly in favor of reducing tariffs, claiming that they view them as ineffectual in addressing alleged trade practices by Beijing.
However, others in the administration, including US Trade Rep. Katherine Tai and national security adviser Jake Sullivan, favor keeping the tariffs in place as leverage over China.
This comes as inflation in the U.S. hit a 40-year high in March and is expected to escalate in the coming months.
Due to the soaring inflation and skyrocketing gas prices, Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said that Americans are suffering from financial strain.
“Paired with historic inflation and shortages for basic goods like baby formula, the rising cost of gas is the result of Joe Biden and Democrats’ anti-U.S. energy agenda,” McDaniel said. “Unfortunately, Biden only plans to make this crisis worse for families by not doing anything.”
Additionally, Democrats are fearing that the dissatisfaction with the Biden administration’s handling of the situation could cost them their majority in Congress during the November 8 midterm elections.
