The Supreme Court on Wednesday morning will hear oral arguments to decide the fate of the cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade policy: Broad and sometimes high tariffs against most of the world’s nations.
Lower federal courts have ruled that Trump lacked the legal authority he cited under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose the so-called reciprocal tariffs on imports from many U.S. trading partners, and fentanyl tariffs on products from Canada, China and Mexico.
The courts said Congress, not the president, has the power to enact tariffs in such a way.
The tariffs start at a baseline of 10% on many nations, and spike to as high as 50% on goods from India and Brazil.
The Supreme Court case is seen as a key legal test for Trump, who has won some favorable rulings from the high court for other policies during his second term in the White House.
