SCOTUS rulings on Trump’s tax plan are ‘life or death’ charges by the White House

The Supreme Court on Friday banned the President Donald Trump’s use of emergency legislation to impose steep tariffs on many of the US’s trading partners, presenting a blow to the president in a case centered on one of his signature economic policies – one he has described as “life or death” for the US economy.

In a 6-3 decision, the justices struck down Trump’s tax bill.

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in November in the case, which focused on Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to suspend his “Independence Day” tax on many countries, including a global 10% tax and a set of higher, so-called “repatriation” taxes on certain nations.

In April, Trump declared the US trade deficit a “national emergency,” and administration lawyers cited that declaration as the legal basis for invoking the IEEPA, which allows the president to respond to “extraordinary and unusual threats” when a national emergency is declared.

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The high court agreed to take up the case last week after lower courts, including the US Court of International Trade (CIT) and the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, blocked Trump’s attempt to use the IEEPA to authorize tariffs in other countries.

Lower courts have pressed the Justice Department to explain why Trump used the IEEPA while other, less consistent statutes passed by Congress deal directly with taxes — including laws that cap tariffs at certain levels or set deadlines for congressional review.

The law authorizes the president to “regulate … imports” when a national emergency is declared, but does not mention the word “tax” — an omission that was at the heart of hours-long arguments before the high court in November.

During oral arguments in November, the justices pressed administration lawyers on whether the IEEPA applies to spending or taxing powers and what safeguards — if any — could limit the executive branch if the high court rules in Trump’s favor.

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A protester holds a sign as the US Supreme Court hears arguments on President Trump’s tariffs on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

In the hearings, the administration’s lawyers told the judges that the IEEPA allows the president to “regulate” the “sale” of goods, which they say amounts to a tax.

But the justices, including Trump’s most consistent appointees, appeared skeptical, pressing the administration that “we’ve ever had another time where a law used that language to grant the power” Trump wanted.

Some conservative justices have questioned whether the “economic equivalent” of taxes — such as penalties, restrictions, licenses and quotas — can be used by the president under the law.

Attorneys for the Trump administration have argued in lower courts that the IEEPA allows the president to respond to “extraordinary and unusual threats” and in cases where a national emergency has been declared.

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The US Supreme Court building is pictured. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Trump has said the deep and “persistent” trade deficit amounts to a national emergency sufficient to trigger his executive powers under emergency legislation.

The Justice Department urged the Supreme Court to allow the tariffs to remain in place, warning that denying Trump tariff authority under the IEEPA would “expose our country to retaliation without an effective defense.”

The plaintiffs responded that in the 50 years since the law was passed, the president has never used it to levy taxes. They also said that, by the administration’s admission, the trade deficit that Trump mentioned has been going on for almost 50 years – a fact that they say undermines his claim that there is an “unusual and unusual” trade emergency.

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They argue that authorizing Trump’s use of the IEEPA to continue his global tax would greatly expand the executive’s power at the expense of other branches of government.

Judges on a three-judge panel of the United States International Trade Court they voted unanimously earlier this year to block Trump’s tariffs from taking effect, ruling that as president, Trump does not have “unfettered authority” to impose tariffs under the emergency law. The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit also rejected the administration’s use of the IEEPA.