Senate Republicans Scramble to Rein in Peter Navarro’s Influence on Trump’s Trade Policy

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Alex Bollinger
February 19, 2025
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6 minutes read

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Wall Street Journal reports that Republican senators are scrambling to diminish the influence of Trump trade adviser and convicted criminal Peter Navarro amid concerns over his push for aggressive tariffs. According to the Journal, many senators fear that Navarro’s trade policies could result in sweeping tariffs on foreign goods, negatively impacting their states’ economies.

Central to their strategy is the confirmation of U.S. Trade Representative nominee Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick, whom they see as key figures in countering Navarro’s rigid protectionist stance.

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“We gotta get Greer confirmed,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) when asked about concerns regarding Navarro’s influence. “There are some people advising the president who view every tariff as found money. … There are revenues to be derived from tariffs, but they have to be discounted against markets closing.”

Even MAGA-aligned lawmakers, such as Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), have expressed skepticism about allowing Navarro too much control over trade policy. “Even the president has admitted there’s going to be pain [from tariffs], and I think in Wisconsin we’re going to have a lot of people experiencing that pain,” Johnson noted.

“I’m hoping the administration is going to be sensitive to that and help alleviate that.” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a long-time proponent of free trade, also voiced concern over Trump’s trade agenda, citing the negative effects of previous tariffs on his state’s agricultural industry. “In my state, farmers say that tariffs hurt them, and they’re still hurting them from the tariffs on China back in 2018,” Paul remarked.

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As the battle over trade policy unfolds, Republican lawmakers are working to ensure that their states do not suffer economic consequences from Navarro’s hardline stance. The confirmation of Greer and Lutnick remains a crucial step in countering what they see as an overreach in protectionist measures.