The US supreme court appeared skeptical of the legal basis of the Trump administration’s sweeping global tariff regime on Wednesday after justices questioned the president’s authority to impose the levies.
Justices heard oral arguments on Wednesday morning on the legality of Donald Trump’s tariffs , a crucial legal test of his controversial economic strategy – and power.
Even conservative justices sounded doubtful of the strength of the Trump administration’s position. “The vehicle is the imposition of taxes on Americans, and that has always been a core power of Congress,” said Chief Justice John Roberts.
In a series of executive orders issued earlier this year, Donald Trump cited the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, a 1977 law which in some circumstances grants the president authority to regulate or prohibit international transactions during a national emergency, as he slapped steep duties on imports into the US.
The supreme court – controlled by a rightwing supermajority crafted by Trump – is reviewing whether IEEPA grants the president the authority to levy a tariff, a word not mentioned in the law. Congress is granted sole authority under the constitution to levy taxes. The court has until the end of its term, in July 2026, to issue a ruling on the case.