President Donald Trump has asked the US Supreme Court to step in and overturn a lower court ruling that struck down many of his high-profile tariffs as illegal.
In a petition filed late Wednesday, the administration urged the justices to act quickly, arguing that the president has the authority to impose such import taxes on foreign countries.
Last week, a divided US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled 7-4 that Trump’s tariffs, implemented under an emergency economic powers law, overstepped presidential authority. The court said setting tariffs is “a core Congressional power,” not something the president can decide alone. If allowed to stand, the ruling could disrupt Trump’s trade policies and require the US to refund billions in tariffs.
Trump has justified the tariffs using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), which allows the president to act against “unusual and extraordinary” threats. In April, he declared an economic emergency, saying that trade imbalances were hurting domestic manufacturing and national security.
Although the appeals court ruled against Trump, it temporarily delayed the decision, giving his administration time to appeal.
“The stakes in this case could not be higher,” wrote Solicitor General John Sauer in Wednesday night’s filing. He argued that the lower court’s decision has “disrupted highly impactful, sensitive, ongoing diplomatic trade negotiations” and created legal uncertainty around the president’s efforts to protect the country from a potential economic crisis.
On the other side, lawyers representing small businesses challenged by the tariffs said they were confident in their case. “These unlawful tariffs are inflicting serious harm on small businesses and jeopardizing their survival,” said Jeffrey Schwab of the Liberty Justice Center. “We hope for a prompt resolution for our clients.”
If the Supreme Court declines to hear the case, the lower court’s ruling could take effect on October 14.
A bit of background:
In May, the Court of International Trade in New York also declared the tariffs unlawful—but that decision was paused while the appeal played out. These rulings stem from lawsuits by small businesses and several US states opposed to the tariffs.
Trump’s executive orders from April imposed a baseline 10% tariff and additional “reciprocal” tariffs aimed at correcting trade imbalances with more than 90 countries. The appeals court ruling also invalidated tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China, which Trump had argued were necessary to combat drug imports.
Some other US tariffs, like those on steel and aluminum, are not affected because they were enacted under a separate presidential authority. Photo by Joe Ravi, Wikimedia commons.
