Sens. Kaine, Warnock set to introduce proposal to repeal Section 122

"The 1974 statute used by President Trump to replace some of the tariffs recently overturned by the Supreme Court was intended to address currency issues that are no longer relevant, according to Senate Democrats who are backing a new bill to repeal the law.

The 'Reclaim Trade Powers Act,' led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Senate Finance trade subcommittee
ranking member Raphael Warnock (D-GA), would strike Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, an
authority that allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 15 percent for as long as 150 days to address a 'large and serious' balance-of-payments deficit. 

Congress passed the law after President Nixon in 1971 imposed 10 percent tariffs to counter expected shifts in exchange rates when he withdrew the U.S. from the gold standard. But the U.S. move to a
floating exchange rate system shortly thereafter made the statute obsolete, and it had never been used
until Trump invoked it, according to the lawmakers.

'It was intended for use during times when foreign central banks could potentially rapidly drain U.S. gold reserves and create a dollar crisis. More than 50 years ago, though, the U.S. moved to a floating
exchange rate system, making the problems Section 122 was intended to address functionally moot,'
Kaine's office said in a statement."