Will Court’s ruling on Trump’s tariffs trigger trade and election-year turmoil?

Court blocks Trump tariffs, election impact

President Donald Trump faced a setback for acting unilaterally on tariffs, as the Supreme Court on Friday delivered a rare rebuke, ruling he lacked authority to declare an economic emergency and impose sweeping new import taxes.

Tariffs had been the cornerstone of Trump’s economic pitch to voters ahead of the midterm elections, with the president even calling tariffs his “favorite word in the dictionary.” He pledged that factories would return from overseas, creating jobs, and warned that removing the tariffs could push the U.S. into a severe recession.

Friday’s ruling is expected to extend political and economic uncertainty over international trade well into the election year.

Trump called the decision “a disgrace” when informed during a private meeting with several governors, according to a source familiar with the president’s reaction who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Republican strategist Doug Heye said it was immediately evident that the president “is not going to be happy" with the outcome.

“We’re starting to hear about how this is a massive blow, a massive repudiation," Heye added.

Still, Heye noted that Trump will likely seek alternative ways to advance his trade agenda.

“Are they going to be able to figure out how to use this as an opportunity or not?" he asked. "There are too many questions.”

The White House plans to use alternative laws to preserve his tariffs, but those policies will only prolong the debate and keep alive an issue that is largely unpopular with voters.

About 6 in 10 Americans said Trump had gone too far on imposing new tariffs on other countries, according to an AP-NORC poll from January.

Even more worrisome for a president elected on the promise of fixing Americans’ concerns about affordability, 76% said in a poll conducted last April that Trump’s tariff policies would increase the cost of consumer goods in the U.S.

Democrats were quick to seize on the opportunity given to them by the Supreme Court, with Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., saying that Trump “is not a king” and his “tariffs were always illegal.”

“Republicans in Congress could have easily ended this economic crisis by standing up for their communities," said DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Instead, they chose to bend the knee to Trump while families, small businesses, and farmers suffered from higher prices.”

The ruling essentially allows Democrats to say that Trump broke the law and that middle class families suffered as a result.

But Trump has claimed that his tariffs were the difference between national prosperity and deep poverty, a pitch he made on Thursday night to voters in the swing state of Georgia.

The president used the word “tariff” 28 times in his speech Thursday at a Georgia steel company, Coosa Steel, which credited the import taxes as making its products more competitive with goods from China.

“Without tariffs, this country would be in such trouble right now,” Trump charged.

Trump also complained that he had to justify his use of tariffs to the Supreme Court.

“I have to wait for this decision. I’ve been waiting forever, forever, and the language is clear that I have the right to do it as president,” he said. “I have the right to put tariffs on for national security purposes, countries that have been ripping us off for years.” By a 6-3 vote, the high court said no.

(With AP inputs)