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On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court may rule on the legality of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
01/09/26 09:50
White House expects Supreme Court win on tariffs, but discussing backup plans, Hassett says
– Reuters
The Trump administration expects the Supreme Court will rule in its favour in litigation testing the legality of the president’s sweeping global tariffs, but is still exploring what could be done if the court rules against it, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Friday.
“Our expectation is that we’re going to win, and if we don’t win, then we know that we’ve got other tools that we could use that get us to the same place,” Hassett said in an interview on CNBC. He said the administration held a call Thursday night with all the principals to discuss possible next steps.
01/09/26 09:45
U.S. has other tariff options if Trump loses Supreme Court case, Bessent says
– Reuters
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U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during a press conference at the Treasury Department in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 17, 2025.Aaron Schwartz/Reuters
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday said he was confident in the ability to reconstitute any lost tariff revenue by imposing duties under other legal authorities if the Supreme Court rules against President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs, but a loss would undercut Trump’s flexibility and leverage.
Bessent, speaking at an Economic Club of Minnesota event at which he touted the benefits of the administration’s economic agenda and discussed some of its plans in Venezuela following the removal of the South American country’s leader, defended the tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act as bringing China, Mexico and Canada to the negotiating table to curb fentanyl trafficking.
“What is not in doubt is our ability to continue collecting tariffs at roughly the same level in terms of overall revenue,” Bessent said. “What is in doubt, and it’s a real change for the American people, was the President loses flexibility to use tariffs, both for national security, for negotiating leverage.”
The levies used under IEEPA have offered Trump significant clout, Bessent said, citing as an example his threat of 100-per-cent tariffs on Chinese imports in retaliation for its threat to put export controls on rare earths magnets critical to many U.S. manufacturing industries.
“My phone started immediately ringing when he said we’ll do 100-per-cent tariffs,” Bessent said. “So he brought them to the table. That was a long way of saying we’ll lose national security ability, flexibility.”
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01/09/26 09:35
Trump says court ruling would be ‘terrible blow’ to U.S.
– Reuters
The U.S. President has continued to express concern about the possibility of losing the case. In a social media post on Jan. 2, Trump said a Supreme Court ruling against the tariffs would be a “terrible blow” to the United States.
“Because of Tariffs, our Country is financially, AND FROM A NATIONAL SECURITY STANDPOINT, FAR STRONGER AND MORE RESPECTED THAN EVER BEFORE,” Trump said in another post on Monday.
01/09/26 09:30
U.S. Supreme Court plans Friday rulings with challenge to Trump’s tariffs top of mind
– Reuters
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President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs at the White House on April 2, 2025 in Washington.Mark Schiefelbein/The Associated Press
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue rulings on Friday as it weighs cases with major implications both nationally and around the world including the legality of President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs.
The court indicated on its website on Tuesday that it could release decisions in argued cases when the justices take the bench during a scheduled sitting on Friday. The court does not announce ahead of time which rulings it intends to issue.
The challenge to Mr. Trump’s tariffs is among the most closely watched of the cases awaiting decisions by the top U.S. judicial body that could impact the global economy and marks a major test of presidential powers. During arguments heard by the court on Nov. 5, conservative and liberal justices appeared to cast doubt on the legality of the tariffs, which Mr. Trump imposed by invoking a 1977 law meant for use during national emergencies. The case involves appeals by Mr. Trump’s administration after lower courts ruled that his unprecedented use of that law exceeded his authority.
Mr. Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act on goods imported from individual countries to address what he called a national emergency related to U.S. trade deficits, as well as on China, Canada and Mexico as economic leverage to curb the trafficking of the often-abused painkiller fentanyl and illicit drugs into the United States.
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