Tariffs imposed by the TACO King (Trump Always Chickens Out) under legislation designed for emergencies exceed his authority, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled yesterday. Via Barrons:
“The challenged Tariff Orders will be vacated and their operation permanently enjoined,” the court said.
The court, which is comprised of a panel of three judges, sided with Democratic-led states and a coalition of small businesses that had sued the Trump administration, arguing that the president had exceeded his authority in using an emergency law to justify his tariffs on other countries.
The ruling, which can be appealed, represented a major setback for Trump and his trade war, which has created wild swings in the markets and befuddled both allies and rivals of the United States.
The panel barred at least Yambo's "Liberation Day" April 2 tariffs from taking effect. While Trump suspended the so-called "reciprocal" tariffs until early July, a 10% baseline duty on almost all countries has been in effect.
The ruling also strikes down fentanyl-related tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China.
Any cases from a federal specialty court like this will go to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington D.C. But since the court issued summary judgement and there's no dispute as to the facts of the case, it's unlikely to be reversed on appeal. In fact, even SCOTUS is unlikely to grant cert.
