Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump’s global tariffs appeared to be on shaky ground after Supreme Court justices expressed skepticism during a hearing on November 5 about his authority to impose sweeping measures on countries around the world. The Trump administration’s top lawyer faced sharp questioning, including from some members of the court’s conservative wing, during the hearing.
Lawyers representing the tariff challengers were also pressed by some justices on what kind of limitations courts could impose on core presidential powers.
Administration officials including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick were among those in the audience, even as Trump opted not to attend. The hearing ran nearly three hours, in what has become one of the most consequential economic and political cases to come before the high court in decades.
The nine justices are weighing whether the president lawfully invoked his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to levy the global tariffs without Congress’s approval, as well as a set of tariffs on Canada, China and Mexico related to fentanyl.
Challengers, a group of small businesses and states, say he exceeded his legal powers. Lower courts have agreed, and now it is up to the Supreme Court to decide the ultimate fate of a cornerstone of the president’s agenda. If the Trump administration loses, it will simply invoke other trade laws, a view widely shared by trade lawyers, senior Trump administration officials, importing companies and analysts. Companies have clamored for certainty and predictability on tariffs so that they can plan their investments.
