On Friday, the federal appeals court ruled that many of President Donald Trump's toughest tariffs were illegal, which could seriously undermine his main source of influence in the expanding global trade war, writes The New York Times. However, the appellate judges delayed the execution of their ruling until mid-October so that the administration could appeal to the Supreme Court.
The ruling confirmed the initial finding of the lower court, indicating that Trump does not have unlimited authority to impose taxes on almost all imports into the United States. The decision questioned Trump's trade strategy, which relies on a 1970s law on international emergency economic powers (IEEPA) to impose large-scale tariffs against dozens of the country's trading partners. This law is usually used to impose sanctions and embargoes against other countries.
The court found it "unlikely" that Congress, when adopting IEEPA, intended to depart from its past practice and grant the president unlimited authority to impose tariffs.
The president, who for several months insisted that his tariffs would make America "rich again," referred to the specter of the Great Depression if his ability to impose tariffs is limited and if the country is forced to return billions of dollars received from tariffs.
In his social media message after the ruling on Friday, he criticized the court and its findings. "Today, the highly biased appeals court wrongly stated that our tariffs should be canceled, but they know that the United States of America will ultimately win," Trump wrote. "If these tariffs are ever canceled, it will be a complete disaster for the country."
The administration has no guarantees of success in the Supreme Court. Many leading conservative and libertarian lawyers and scholars argue that the presidential tariffs were imposed illegally.
As noted by the NYT, even if Trump appeals to the Supreme Court and loses, he will still retain significant tariff powers. Among the available tools is a trade law provision known as "Section 232," which allows the president to impose tariffs related to national security. Trump used this tool to impose tariffs on foreign cars and steel, and also proposed additional tariffs on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and other goods.
Photo: The New York Times