President Donald Trump has shown he has a lot to say after the Supreme Court struck down his contentious “Liberation Day” tariff plan.
On Friday (February 20), the Supreme Court voted 6-3 to overturn tariffs Trump had imposed on nearly every country, concluding his effort to rely on an emergency-powers statute to enact the sweeping levies didn’t meet the legal standard.
To justify the sharp increases, the president cited the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
As explained on Congress’ website, the IEEPA “provides the President broad authority to regulate a variety of economic transactions following a declaration of national emergency”.
The law has been invoked in the past after major events such as 9/11. Trump argued that the US trade deficit was severe enough to qualify as an “emergency,” but the Court disagreed.
Separate from the IEEPA debate, the Constitution generally places decisions around creating or adjusting taxes—including tariffs—within Congress’ authority.
After the high-profile defeat at the Supreme Court, Trump responded publicly on Truth Social, criticizing the nation’s highest court in a lengthy post.
“The supreme court (will be using lower case letters for a while based on a complete lack of respect!) of the United States accidentally and unwittingly gave me, as President of the United States, far more powers and strength than I had prior to their ridiculous, dumb, and very internationally divisive ruling,” he wrote on February 23.
Trump continued: “For one thing, I can use Licenses to do absolutely ‘terrible’ things to foreign countries, especially those countries that have been RIPPING US OFF for many decades, but incomprehensibly, according to the ruling, can’t charge them a License fee – BUT ALL LICENSES CHARGE FEES, why can’t the United States do so? You do a license to get a fee! The opinion doesn’t explain that, but I know the answer!”
He also asserted that the Court has “approved all other tariffs,” arguing those tools could be deployed in what he described as a more forceful manner.
Trump’s rant went on: “Our incompetent supreme court did a great job for the wrong people, and for that they should be ashamed of themselves (but not the Great Three!).
“The next thing you know they will rule in favor of China and others, who are making an absolute fortune on Birthright Citizenship, by saying the 14th Amendment was NOT written to take care of the ‘babies of slaves,’ which it was as proven by the EXACT TIMING of its construction, filing, and ratification, which perfectly coincided with the END OF THE CIVIL WAR.”
In the same vein, Trump claimed the ruling would benefit China and other nations, saying it would leave them “happy and rich.”
His comments follow reports that he has identified a legal workaround that could enable him to impose 15 percent tariffs on certain countries for up to 150 days.