Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) appeared on CNN Thursday to push a bipartisan effort to rein in President Trump’s authority on trade by shifting tariff power back to Congress — a move that would essentially kneecap the president’s America First economic strategy.

Cantwell is teaming up with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley to introduce the Trade Review Act of 2025, a bill that would require congressional approval before any new tariffs could be enacted. The legislation would also give Congress the power to terminate tariffs through a simple resolution of disapproval.

The senator said the bill is about restoring balance. “Congress’s duty and responsibility is not just interstate commerce but foreign commerce,” Cantwell told Wolf Blitzer. “It is time… that Congress should review this.”

Translation: Democrats (and a few establishment Republicans) are panicking as Trump reasserts U.S. trade dominance through aggressive tariff measures — most recently a 25 percent levy on Canadian goods to fight the fentanyl crisis, and a sweeping global tariff reset under the banner of “Liberation Day.”

Cantwell framed her proposal as a return to a “rules-based” approach to trade policy, warning that Trump’s unilateral tariffs create “economic disruption.” But for many American workers and manufacturers, that so-called “disruption” is finally leveling the playing field after decades of lopsided globalist deals that gutted U.S. industry.

Let’s be real: this is about power — and fear.

Trump’s tariff moves have Democrats and globalist Republicans scrambling because they work. China, Mexico, Canada, and the EU are already grumbling over the pressure. Domestic factories are revving back up. Pharma giants are moving production back to the U.S. And Trump’s message — that America won’t be taken advantage of anymore — is resonating with voters across party lines.

Senate Democrats know that if they can block Trump’s economic agenda now, they might be able to slow his momentum ahead of the 2026 midterms. But Cantwell’s bill faces long odds. With a Republican-controlled House and a president who wields the veto pen, it’s unlikely this legislation will get far — even with a few Senate GOP defectors.

Still, this is a warning shot.

The D.C. establishment wants back in the driver’s seat when it comes to trade. They’re uncomfortable with Trump calling the shots. But American voters sent him to the White House precisely to break up the status quo — and return power to the people who’ve been ignored for decades.

The battle over tariffs is no longer just a policy debate. It’s a proxy war over who gets to shape the future of American sovereignty: the D.C. elite, or the man they can’t control.