*By Christian Smith* Pressure continues to mount on President Donald Trump to walk back his tariff policy, with Russia becoming the seventh World Trade Organization member to officially challenge the White House's duties on steel and aluminum. And while the organization will take up these cases, Politico trade reporter Megan Cassella said the process will likely take a long time to play out. "The WTO doesn't tend to do anything quickly," Cassella said in an interview on Cheddar Tuesday. Even if the WTO, an intergovernmental agency that overseas international trade, does eventually come to a conclusion, the U.S. could still avoid any repercussions. "Given the Trump administration's sort of disdain for the WTO and its legal rulings, it's also possible that, even if they do eventually come to a conclusion, Trump might just say, 'Well you know, that's it then, that's the end of the U.S. membership in the WTO'," Cassella noted. Russia's appeal filed last week cites "numerous violations of WTO rules by the United States in introducing this measure," said Russian Economic Development Minister Maksim Oreshkin in a [statement](https://www.rt.com/business/431256-russia-tariffs-us-good/). The 25 percent tax on foreign steel and 10 percent tax on foreign aluminum took effect June 1. The Trump administration justified the tariffs using the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, which grants the president the power to restrict imports to protect national security. But not everyone is buying into the White House's rationale. China, India, the European Union, Canada, Mexico, Norway, and now Russia have all filed complaints with the WTO. For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/russia-challenges-trumps-tariffs-in-wto)

Share:
More In Politics
Breaking Down Election Night
Julia Manchester, Reporter for The Hill, joined Cheddar to discuss the repercussions of republican victories on election night.
Former Georgia Police Chief on Portland Mayor's Policing Budget Plan
Clarence Cox III, a former police chief from Georgia, joined Cheddar to discuss Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler's plans to greatly increase the city's police budget. "I think his investments, as I read and understand, are in the right areas," Cox said. "Body-worn cameras are something that I'm a very big proponent of, and I think the mayor's going in the right direction with some of the initiatives."
Polar Bears International Calls on World Leaders to Take Real Steps on Climate Crisis
Alysa McCall, director of conservation outreach and staff scientist at Polar Bears International, joined Cheddar to discuss the ongoing fight to protect polar bears from extinction while world leaders gathered to discuss the climate crisis. McCall explained her organization's mission "to ensure the long term survival of polar bears by helping ensure their arctic sea ice habitat remains intact." McCall said she hopes actionable steps are taken after the UN climate summit to mitigate the crisis and not just more promises.
Load More