Supreme Court Justices Strike Down Trump’s Tariffs

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that President Trump exceeded his authority when he imposed sweeping tariffs on imports from nearly every U.S. trading partner, handing a 6-3 defeat to a key element of his second-term trade agenda and raising questions about effects on the economy and consumers.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote for the majority that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 does not authorize the president to impose tariffs, saying the asserted power to levy duties of "unlimited amount, duration, and scope" requires clear congressional authorization.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Brett M. Kavanaugh dissented. The opinion noted that the statute does not use the words "tariffs," "taxes" or "duties," and rejected the administration’s reading of the words "regulate" and "importation" as authority to impose broad tariffs; the court applied the major questions doctrine and observed that no prior president had used the law to impose tariffs on this scale.

United States

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