Page "Reciprocal Tariff Act" Paragraph 3

Before the RTAA, if Congress wanted to establish a lower tariff for particular imports, it would act unilaterally, taking the foreign country ’ s tariff rate as fixed.

Congress would choose a tariff rate that was either a little higher or lower than the median preferred tariff, depending upon the composition of the Congress.

Generally, a Republican controlled Congress would prefer higher tariffs and a Democrat controlled Congress would prefer lower tariffs.

Thus, tariffs were chosen based on the domestic politics of the United States.

Individual members of Congress were under great pressure from industry lobbyists to raise tariffs to protect them from the negative effects of foreign imports.