U.S. Senator says Democrats will have a tough time curtailing Trump’s tariff policy

U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego holds a press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa September 1, 2026. Photo by Blair Gable /Postmedia

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OTTAWA – U.S. Senator from Arizona Ruben Gallego tempered expectations around the prospect of Democrats gaining a majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate and using that power to curtail U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada.

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“I do think they’ll use their power,” said Gallego, during a press conference at the U.S. embassy in Ottawa on Tuesday. “The question is, do you have enough to overcome vetoes and things of that nature.”

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Democrats are hopeful that they will have good results during the Nov. 3 midterm elections, amid Trump’s low approval ratings.

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Gallego, who was in Ottawa visiting with embassy staff and Canadian politicians to discuss the ongoing trade dispute, said Congress and the Senate have historically given up too much of their power to the president when it comes to trade policy.

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Trump has applied most of his tariffs through executive action. The tariffs he enacted under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in February, but the president has since found other pieces of legislation to apply more levies on goods from other countries.

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The president also has the power to veto legislation.

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“There’s going to be a strong incentive for Democrats to actually engage on oversight when it comes to tariffs,” said Gallego. “The…number one reason why is because by the Constitution, it’s the Senate and Congress in general that actually has tariff policy.”

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Canada walked away from a potential interim trade deal with the U.S. on Aug. 21, after weeks of negotiations between Canadian and American officials.

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The potential deal would have provided tariff relief on Section 232 levies on Canadian autos, steel and aluminum, as well as the avoidance of a 50 per-cent tariff under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which applies to $28 billion worth of Canadian goods. In exchange, Canada would have ended its moratoriums on U.S. alcohol in several provinces and dropped tariffs on American autos.

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Prime Minister Mark Carney ultimately decided to hit pause on negotiations, citing several last-minute demands on the U.S. side that made the deal untenable.

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Canada has now threatened dollar-for-dollars tariffs on U.S. goods, which are set to take effect Sept. 8, in response to the Section 338 tariffs.

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The prospect of Canada gaining tariff-free access to the American market remains in question for the time being.

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Last week, California Governor Gavin Newsom, who is a Democrat hopeful for the presidency in 2028, told CTV News he could not guarantee the complete removal of tariffs.

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Gallego said he could not clarify what Newsom meant in terms of his comments, but said it should be his party’s goal to remove tariffs.