“The United States, after all, is not at war with every nation in the world,” the US Supreme Court said in its landmark judgment against Donald Trump, striking down tariffs imposed across the globe. During his second term, Trump had repeatedly threatened countries with tariffs, using them as a primary tool to regulate and shape US trade relations worldwide.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court said, “The United States, after all, is not at war with every nation in the world. The Government instead relies exclusively on IEEPA. It reads the words ‘regulate’ and ‘importation’ to effect a sweeping delegation of
Congress’s power to set tariff policy—authorizing the President to impose tariffs of unlimited amount and duration, on any product from any country. ”The top American court dealt a stinging blow to Republican leader and MAGA boss Trump, delivering a verdict with major implications for global trade and the broader economy.
In a 6–3 ruling authored by conservative chief justice John Roberts, the justices upheld a lower court’s finding that Trump had exceeded his legal authority by invoking the 1977 law to impose sweeping tariffs.
The court, however, did not specify what should be done with the more than $130 billion in tariffs that have already been collected.
“The president asserts the extraordinary power to unilaterally impose tariffs of unlimited amount, duration, and scope,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion. “In light of the breadth, history, and constitutional context of that asserted authority, he must identify clear congressional authorization to exercise it.”
