- US Supreme Court struck down Trump's global tariffs in a 6-3 decision
- The ruling found the 1977 IEEPA law does not authorise tariff imposition
- Trump criticised the ruling as a "disgrace" during a meeting with governors
US President Donald Trump has reacted after the Supreme Court struck down his global tariffs and called it a "disgrace" during a meeting with state governors. The ruling handed the Republican leader a significant loss on an issue important to his economic agenda.
In a 6-3 vote, the judges found that the 1977 law known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorise the imposition of duties.
Trump has long relied on tariffs as a lever for diplomatic pressure and negotiations, he made unprecedented use of emergency economic powers in his second term to slap new duties on virtually all US trading partners.
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who served during Trump's first term, cheered the ruling and wrote on social media, "American families and American businesses pay American tariffs - not foreign countries. With this decision, American families and businesses can breathe a sigh of relief."
On Thursday, Trump complained that he had to justify his use of tariffs to the Supreme Court in a speech at a Georgia steel company.
"I have to wait for this decision. I've been waiting forever, forever, and the language is clear that I have the right to do it as president," he said. "I have the right to put tariffs on for national security purposes, countries that have been ripping us off for years."
New research tied to one of America's leading banks found on Thursday that tariffs paid by midsize US businesses tripled over the course of the past year.
The additional taxes have meant that companies that employ a combined 48 million people in the US - the kinds of businesses that Trump had promised to revive - have had to find ways to absorb the new expense by passing it along to customers in the form of higher prices, employing fewer workers or accepting lower profits.
Trump's tariffs - not all of which were overturned - were expected to generate $3 trillion in revenues over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. That sum is large, but it would be insufficient to cover the costs of the projected deficits.
The Supreme Court has not ruled on how any refund process would work.
(With inputs from agencies)
