President Donald Trump announced a further increase in tariffs on Saturday, raising the rate on imports from all countries to 15 percent, less than 24 hours after the Supreme Court rejected his previous attempts to impose sweeping emergency tariffs.
The move, revealed on social media, escalates a trade dispute that has drawn criticism from international partners and sparked legal challenges. Trump stated he was raising the existing 10 percent “Worldwide Tariff” because many countries had been “ripping” off the US for decades. He asserted the 15 percent level is “fully allowed, and legally tested.”
The announcement followed a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling on Friday that invalidated tariffs Trump had imposed last year, citing an overreach of executive authority under an economic emergency law. In response to the ruling, Trump immediately invoked Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act to impose a 10 percent tariff on all US imports, a step no previous president had taken. This law permits a tariff of up to 15 percent for a period of 150 days, subject to potential extension by Congress.
Trump also indicated plans to initiate investigations into unfair trade practices by other countries under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, potentially leading to additional tariffs. China is expected to be a focus of these investigations.
The Supreme Court’s decision on Friday marked a significant setback for Trump’s trade policies. According to CNBC, the ruling centered on the limits of presidential power to impose tariffs without congressional approval. The court found that Trump’s employ of the emergency law to justify the tariffs exceeded his constitutional authority.
Huckabee Sanders, speaking on Friday, suggested a strategy for influencing Trump’s actions, stating that the quickest way to prompt a response from the former president is to “tell him that he can’t,” according to The Hill.
The administration has yet to detail how it will implement the newly announced 15 percent tariff or the scope of the Section 301 investigations. Lawmakers have not yet indicated whether they will attempt to block the 150-day tariff imposed under Section 122.