WASHINGTON, D.C.: In a major setback to former President Donald Trump’s trade program, a federal court on Wednesday invalidated a fundamental pillar of his international tariff policy. According to the latest Axios report, the U.S. Court of International Trade adjudicated that Trump did not have the authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to enforce extensive levies on imports, successfully quashing most of the taxes executed during his term.
The verdict came in two connected cases brought by businesses and state attorneys general, who contended that Trump exceeded his statutory boundaries by utilising a 1977 emergency law, factually dissimilar to tariffs, to sanction a comprehensive trade procedure. The three-judge panel concurred, asserting in their summary decision that IEEPA does not confer the president infinite power to carry out global trade taxes.
“The court does not read IEEPA to confer such unbounded authority,” the judges penned, divesting the tariffs and eternally blocking their implementation.
Legal and political fallout: Sharp reactions from both sides
The decision elicited strong responses from across the political gamut. The Trump government, which has already lodged a notice of petition, denounced the court’s pronouncement. White House spokesperson Kush Desai disparaged the court, saying, “It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency.” Ex-Trump consultant Stephen Miller went further, labelling the decision a “judicial coup” on social media.
In the meantime, attorneys general initiating the suit applauded the court’s action as a crucial vital control on executive encroachment. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield underscored that “the Constitution doesn’t give any president unchecked authority to upend the economy.” New York Attorney General Letitia James agrees and added that, “These tariffs are a massive tax hike on working families and American businesses.”
What’s next? Uncertainty for trade, markets, and negotiations
Nonetheless, tariffs executed under Section 232, covering imports such as automobiles, aluminium, and steel, are still in effect; the court’s verdict leaves much of Trump’s trade conflict infrastructure ripped to pieces. The ruling sidestepped introductory rulings and went straight to a concluding decision, nullifying what it denoted as “Worldwide, Retaliatory or Trafficking” directives.
Trade specialists are alerting everyone to instantaneous interruptions at U.S. harbours, with customs administrators and businesses uncertain of what tariffs, if any, are still valid and operative. Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute noted the bigger consequences: “It gives foreign governments significant new leverage in ongoing trade talks.”
With lawful petitions imminent and trade policy unstable, the approaching weeks are critical to the future of U.S. economic negotiations.
