President Trump said the Supreme Court hearing Wednesday that will determine whether his tariff program is legal is “life or death” for the U.S.
The high court will hear arguments over whether Mr. Trump overstepped his authority by invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 when setting the sweeping tariffs.
“Tomorrow’s United States Supreme Court case is, literally, LIFE OR DEATH for our Country,” he wrote on social media Tuesday. “With a Victory, we have tremendous, but fair, Financial and National Security. Without it, we are virtually defenseless against other Countries who have, for years, taken advantage of us.”
“Our Stock Market is consistently hitting Record Highs, and our Country has never been more respected than it is right now,” the president wrote. “A big part of this is the Economic Security created by Tariffs, and the Deals that we have negotiated because of them. Thank you for your attention to this matter!?”
Mr. Trump had originally said he wanted to witness the oral arguments in person, but has since said he will not attend. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will be present instead at the request of the president, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday.
“I’m actually going to go and sit hopefully in the front row and listen — have a ringside seat,” Mr. Bessent said on “Jesse Watters Primetime” on Fox News.
Lower courts determined earlier this year that the president had overstepped, so now the nine justices will take up the issue.
The suing parties said the power to impose duties in this instance should rest with Congress, while the administration says Mr. Trump had to correct trade imbalances with other countries that harm U.S. manufacturing and workers.
The president has argued it’s one of the most important cases to go before the Supreme Court, and that a ruling against the tariffs would cause the U.S. to have to refund billions of dollars in duties collected.
