I applaud your conclusion and the SCOTUS decision. “This ruling does not end the tariff debate. It redirects it back to where it constitutionally belongs, to the branch of government that you vote for, that you can call, that you can pressure, and that you can hold accountable at the ballot box.
Regarding tariffs, we must be very careful in our explanations. Foreign countries do not pay tariffs. Tariffs or anything else cannot be imposed on foreign countries. Imagine if the U.S. tried to collect the funds from China, Mexico, Italy, et al. Tariffs are a tax on goods from foreign countries that are paid by U.S. companies and U.S. citizens. This administration still doesn’t want anybody to believe that. Even Mike Johnson implies the lie, "No one can deny the tariffs brought in in billions of dollars..." Brought in?
Watching Trump give a live legal analysis of today’s Supreme Court ruling banning his tariffs is embarrassing, the kind of embarrassing you can’t spin, only survive.
That there were even three dissenters, to wit: Justices Thomas, Alito, and Kavanaugh, is startling.
I suppose they missed a few civics classes in junior high school. Any opinion of those three should be forever suspect. As you point out, this decision is huge.
I am breathing a huge sigh of relief this morning. You're right. The separation of powers worked today. Also heartening is that the Supreme Court respected the decisions of the lower courts, particularly the court of international trade, whose experts saw this power grab for what it was way last summer. This Supreme Court has been disrespectful of lower court rulings for quite some time now, and I am relieved that in this instance, they honored the careful opinions of those further down the line---the people that are actually in the trenches of the slew of litigation made necessary by this outlaw administration. Thanks for your excellent summary of the issues.
Outstanding! The ongoing grift and extortion have given our country the status of pirates and gangsters. This little decision has given the world hope that all our future policy will eschew this behavior. Fat Chance as long as the pirates and gangsters continue in control.
Let’s call it what it was: an illegal cash grab dressed up as policy, jacking up prices, squeezing working families, and torching alliances that took decades to build.
Every dollar Trump took without authority should get paid back. With interest.
I did like the idea of using tariffs as a secondary sanctioning tool for countries (e.g., China, India, Hungary et al.) buying olis from Russia; the Congress could usher that through, explicitly and quickly.
Absolutely outstanding breakdown, Mitch. This decision is a vital affirmation that Congress—not any one president—holds the purse strings and the power to tax, and I’m genuinely excited to see the Court step in and draw some long-overdue guardrails around this behavior.
Unilateral, open-ended tariffs of this scope were already distorting markets, punishing small businesses, and threatening to send prices even higher for everyday consumers, so it’s a huge relief to see the justices say “enough.”
Democracy works when each branch stays in its lane, and this ruling is a strong reminder that even a president who acts like a clown with the global economy doesn’t get a blank cheque to tax the world on his own.
Great essay, as always. Congratulations, again, to your daughter on her success.
Does anyone know why Justice Kavanaugh dissented. Thomas and Alito are bought and paid for.
I applaud your conclusion and the SCOTUS decision. “This ruling does not end the tariff debate. It redirects it back to where it constitutionally belongs, to the branch of government that you vote for, that you can call, that you can pressure, and that you can hold accountable at the ballot box.
Regarding tariffs, we must be very careful in our explanations. Foreign countries do not pay tariffs. Tariffs or anything else cannot be imposed on foreign countries. Imagine if the U.S. tried to collect the funds from China, Mexico, Italy, et al. Tariffs are a tax on goods from foreign countries that are paid by U.S. companies and U.S. citizens. This administration still doesn’t want anybody to believe that. Even Mike Johnson implies the lie, "No one can deny the tariffs brought in in billions of dollars..." Brought in?
Watching Trump give a live legal analysis of today’s Supreme Court ruling banning his tariffs is embarrassing, the kind of embarrassing you can’t spin, only survive.
You are a braver man than *I to watch Trump on anything.
That there were even three dissenters, to wit: Justices Thomas, Alito, and Kavanaugh, is startling.
I suppose they missed a few civics classes in junior high school. Any opinion of those three should be forever suspect. As you point out, this decision is huge.
I am breathing a huge sigh of relief this morning. You're right. The separation of powers worked today. Also heartening is that the Supreme Court respected the decisions of the lower courts, particularly the court of international trade, whose experts saw this power grab for what it was way last summer. This Supreme Court has been disrespectful of lower court rulings for quite some time now, and I am relieved that in this instance, they honored the careful opinions of those further down the line---the people that are actually in the trenches of the slew of litigation made necessary by this outlaw administration. Thanks for your excellent summary of the issues.
Outstanding! The ongoing grift and extortion have given our country the status of pirates and gangsters. This little decision has given the world hope that all our future policy will eschew this behavior. Fat Chance as long as the pirates and gangsters continue in control.
Let’s call it what it was: an illegal cash grab dressed up as policy, jacking up prices, squeezing working families, and torching alliances that took decades to build.
Every dollar Trump took without authority should get paid back. With interest.
I did like the idea of using tariffs as a secondary sanctioning tool for countries (e.g., China, India, Hungary et al.) buying olis from Russia; the Congress could usher that through, explicitly and quickly.
Absolutely outstanding breakdown, Mitch. This decision is a vital affirmation that Congress—not any one president—holds the purse strings and the power to tax, and I’m genuinely excited to see the Court step in and draw some long-overdue guardrails around this behavior.
Unilateral, open-ended tariffs of this scope were already distorting markets, punishing small businesses, and threatening to send prices even higher for everyday consumers, so it’s a huge relief to see the justices say “enough.”
Democracy works when each branch stays in its lane, and this ruling is a strong reminder that even a president who acts like a clown with the global economy doesn’t get a blank cheque to tax the world on his own.