Tariffs against China, others to go into effect this weekend, White House says

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Friday said that 25% tariffs against Mexico and Canada and a 10% tariff against China will go into effect on Saturday. Shortly after his election, then-President-elect Trump threatened to impose the tariffs if the three countries didn’t take steps to fight drug trafficking and illegal immigration into the United States.

Does Trump really have the authority to put these tariffs in place? The Congressional Research Service in December explained that, technically, only Congress has the authority to impose tariffs. But the president does have the authority to adjust tariffs in some cases, according to the CRS. Those cases include situations where an import threatens the national security of the United States, or when tariffs are deemed necessary in order to protect a domestic industry.

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s report about how the Colombian government recently crumpled in negotiations with Trump’s administration once he threatened to impose tariffs on the country’s shipments to the United States.