Democrats rejoice in Supreme Court rebuke of Trump tariffs

Congressional Democrats rejoiced on Friday and Republicans remained divided in the wake of a momentous Supreme Court decision striking down a large portion of President Donald Trump’s tariff agenda

“Trump’s chaotic and illegal tariff tax made life more expensive and our economy more unstable. Families paid more. Small businesses and farmers got squeezed. Markets swung wildly,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement following the decision. “We’ve said from day one: a president cannot ignore Congress and unilaterally slap tariffs on Americans. That overreach failed.”

The ruling is a major hit to Trump, who used a novel reading of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, to slap a barrage of tariffs on American trading partners. Tariffs — and the economy more broadly will be a key messaging issue for Democrat on the campaign trail for this year’s midterm elections. Primaries start next month leading up to the November general election.

For Republicans, Trump’s tariffs, which have proven largely unpopular in a pivotal election year, are a more complicated issue.

“SCOTUS’s outrageous ruling handcuffs our fight against unfair trade that has devastated American workers for decades. These tariffs protected jobs, revived manufacturing, and forced cheaters like China to pay up,” Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, posted to X. 

“This betrayal must be reversed and Republicans must get to work immediately on a reconciliation bill to codify the tariffs that had made our country the hottest country on earth!” Moreno continued.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has voted with Democrats in opposition to Trump’s tariffs, celebrated the decision.

“In defense of our Republic, the Supreme Court struck down using emergency powers to enact taxes,” Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., posted on X. “This ruling will also prevent a future President such as AOC from using emergency powers to enact socialism.”