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International Desk, 29 May 2025 : A US court has blocked President Donald Trump’s extensive tariff policy imposed on various countries earlier this year, dealing a significant blow to his economic agenda. According to the British news outlet BBC, the Court of International Trade in Manhattan issued the ruling on May 29, 2025.
The court stated that the emergency law cited by the Trump administration to impose these tariffs does not grant the president unilateral authority to impose duties on goods from nearly all countries. The US Constitution assigns the power to regulate international trade to Congress, which holds greater authority than the president in this regard. Additionally, separate tariffs imposed on China, Mexico, and Canada—claimed by the White House to address illegal drug trafficking and immigration—have also been suspended.
The Trump administration promptly appealed the ruling. White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai stated, “Determining how to address national emergencies is not the role of unelected judges. President Trump is committed to prioritizing America and using all executive powers to tackle crises and restore American greatness.”
The lawsuit was filed by the Liberty Justice Center on behalf of five small businesses affected by the tariffs. This case marks the first major legal challenge to Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariffs. Six other lawsuits against Trump’s trade policies, filed by 13 US states and other small business groups, are also ongoing.
A panel of three judges noted that while Trump invoked the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to justify the tariffs, the law does not grant the president the authority to impose such broad tariffs. The judges stated that Trump’s “global and retaliatory tariff orders” exceeded the scope of his powers and were not consistent with the threats cited in the orders.
AI/MR
