Today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments regarding the legality of former President Donald Trump’s global tariff fiasco. This critical hearing is expected to be the first week of November. The case has generated a lot of press interest. As litigation continues, it’ll test Trump’s presidential authority and his signature economic policy. As it stands, Trump’s tariffs are still in place, spreading pain to all his trading partners.
That’s because a federal appeals court already ruled that Trump acted outside his authority when he first slapped these tariffs. A group of small businesses and a dozen states have intervened to challenge this decision. Each of these claims simply asserts that the tariffs are unauthorized. If the Supreme Court rules for the challengers, the United States could be required to refund billions. This would be in addition to the tariffs already collected.
Trump used the IEEPA as a basis for imposing tariffs. These tariffs, imposed between 10% and 50%, have hit a multitude of countries from China to Mexico to Canada. IEEPA’s usage has raised concerns over how much economic authority the president should wield unilaterally. This has become a key point of contention in the legal tussle that continues to rage.
The lower courts found that Trump did not have the legal authority to issue these tariffs. This decision set an accelerated schedule for the Supreme Court to hear the case. On his platform, Truth Social, Trump attacked the appeals court decision. Its use and implications would be nothing short of catastrophic for this nation.
“If allowed to stand, this Decision would literally destroy the United States of America.” – Donald Trump
As the Supreme Court prepares for their next round of consideration of lower court rulings, the result would greatly change the nature of trade policy and the scope of executive power in the United States. The legal community is undoubtedly paying close attention to the case. It could reshape the president’s authority over economic issues going forward.