On Tuesday, President Trump announced that his administration would contest a recent Court of Appeals ruling which backed his global tariffs and dismissed his assertion of an “urgent” situation.
Trump expressed concerns about the repercussions of the ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the U.S. Circuit, noting that the decision upheld a lower court’s view that tariffs were not sanctioned under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEPA).
“If we can’t overturn that ruling, we might see consequences like never before. That would be a disaster,” Trump remarked on “The Scott Jennings Radio Show.”
“This ruling feels like a serious blow. I mean, it’s an emergency,” he continued. “We’ll have an emergency meeting probably tomorrow. Just look at the stock market—this ruling is a critical issue. Without tariffs, our country faces a completely different reality.”
The president indicated that the administration intends to fight back against the ruling and suggested that the Supreme Court would back his tariffs.
During the interview, Jennings inquired about Trump’s faith in a favorable outcome from the Supreme Court. Trump cautioned about the serious implications if the challenge were to fail.
“I wouldn’t want to think that way; that would be a negative outcome. If we lose this for the country, it will be catastrophic. We’re vulnerable right now,” he stated.
On Monday night, Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent mentioned that if the Supreme Court ruled against them, the administration would explore other avenues for implementing tariffs.
In his talk with Jennings, Trump championed his tariff strategies, claiming that high import taxes would enhance their negotiating position for a peace agreement.
“It gives us significant leverage and immense economic strength,” he articulated. “If we lose this ruling, it will be an economic calamity for the U.S. Our country could become extremely wealthy, but losing this case could lead us to severe economic hardship.”
Trump had been the first president to invoke the IEPA to impose tariffs earlier this year on countries like Canada, China, and Mexico, citing a fentanyl crisis. However, the appeals court found that the administration lacked “clear legislative approval” for the “scale” of the president’s actions as stated in Friday’s decision.
