Letitia James (left) won a significant Supreme Court victory over Donald Trump. (Photo: NYI collage)
New York Attorney General Letitia James and 11 other state attorneys general took a victory lap today (Feb. 20) after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the bulk of Trump tariffs.
The Court held in a 6-3 vote that sweeping tariffs imposed by the Trump administration under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) violate the law.
James and the AG coalition sued the Trump administration last April. The IEEPA tariffs severely disrupted the economy for workers and businesses, they argued.
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“These illegal tariffs caused immense economic chaos, raising costs for families and businesses throughout our country,” said James in a statement.
“The Supreme Court has agreed that this administration has no authority to impose massive new taxes on a whim. This is a critical victory for the rule of law and our economy.”
Trump denounced the ruling as a “disgrace” and immediately announced a new 10% global tariff using Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows for temporary 150-day surcharges.
The Trump administration imposed IEEPA tariffs on its so-called “Liberation Day,” strarting with a 10% baseline tariff on almost all countries. Higher “reciprocal” tariffs were levied against a handful of close allies and trading partners, including specific levies on Mexico, Canada, China.
Before Trump, no other president had used IEEPA to impose tariffs.
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The lawsuit argued that Congress had not granted the president the authority to impose these tariffs and lacked authority under executive orders, social media posts, and agency orders.
The administration declared national emergencies regarding trade deficits, drug trafficking, and immigration, allowing him to bypass Congress using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
In August, the U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed that the Trump administration does not have the authority to impose these tariffs by executive order under IEEPA.
In a landmark 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that the power to tax and levy tariffs belongs exclusively to Congress under Article I of the Constitution.
The Court rejected the administration’s argument that IEEPA’s authority to “regulate… importation” included the power for the president to unilaterally impose tariffs.
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Chief Justice John Roberts, who wrote the opinion for the majority, noted that IEEPA contains no reference to “tariffs” or “duties” and that Congress has always used explicit language when delegating taxing authority.
Allowing the President to impose tariffs of “unlimited amount, duration, and scope” under a self-declared emergency would create a “freewheeling” authority that Congress never intended to grant,” he added.
Joining Attorney General James suitg were attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Vermont.