Advertisement|Remove ads.

The Trump administration reportedly faced skepticism from conservative justices during early arguments in the crucial tariffs case at the Supreme Court.
According to a CNN report, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett pressed the Trump administration on a range of issues. This included questioning whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorized President Donald Trump to impose emergency tariffs.
Chief Justice Roberts also said that Congress has the “core power” when it comes to tax regulation, while rejecting the Trump administration’s claim that tariffs are not taxes.
“So to have the president’s foreign affairs power trump that basic power for Congress seems to me to kind of at least neutralize between the two powers, the executive power and the legislative power,” Roberts said, according to the report.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer defended President Trump’s tariffs by saying that these are regulatory levies, not revenue-raising tariffs. “The fact that they raise revenue was only incidental,” Sauer stated, according to a report by CNBC.
However, Justice Sonia Sotomayor told Sauer that these tariffs are generating money from American citizens. “You say tariffs are not taxes, but that’s exactly what they are,” she said.
Legality Questioned
The Supreme Court justices also questioned the legality of President Trump’s tariffs. Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of the six conservative members on the court, asked if there is a practical way for Congress to get back its power to regulate taxes.
“What happens when the president simply vetoes legislation to take these powers back?” Gorsuch asked, according to the CNBC report.
Get updates to this story developing directly on Stocktwits.
For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.