U.S. Supreme Court Police stand behind security barriers in front of the Court building, which is obscured in construction scaffolding, on the first day of the Court’s new term on October 06, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images
The Supreme Court on Wednesday morning will hear oral arguments to decide the fate of the cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade policy: Broad and sometimes high tariffs against most of the world’s nations.
Lower federal courts have ruled that Trump lacked the legal authority he cited under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose the so-called reciprocal tariffs on imports from many U.S. trading partners, and fentanyl tariffs on products from Canada, China and Mexico.
The courts said Congress, not the president, has the power to enact tariffs in such a way.
The tariffs start at a baseline of 10% on many nations, and spike to as high as 50% on goods from India and Brazil.
The Supreme Court case is seen as a key legal test for Trump, who has won some favorable rulings from the high court for other policies during his second term in the White House.
Conservatives hold a 6-3 majority among the court’s justices.
Trump insists the tariffs are crucial to protecting the American economy and citizens, and serve as a sharp prod to companies to make their products in the United States.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Trump wrote, “Tomorrow’s United States Supreme Court case is, literally, LIFE OR DEATH for our Country.”
“With a Victory, we have tremendous, but fair, Financial and National Security,” Trump wrote in the Truth Social post.
“Without it, we are virtually defenseless against other Countries who have, for years, taken advantage of us. Our Stock Market is consistently hitting Record Highs, and our Country has never been more respected than it is right now,” he said. “A big part of this is the Economic Security created by Tariffs, and the Deals that we have negotiated because of them.”
US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he arrives at Palm Beach International Airport on Oct. 31, 2025 in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Samuel Corum | Getty Images
Critics of tariffs say the financial hit is borne not by foreign manufacturers but by U.S. importers who pay them, and then largely pass on the added costs to American consumers.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent plans to attend Wednesday’s oral arguments.
Trump previously said he was considering attending, which would have been an apparent first for a sitting president.
On Sunday, he said on Truth SociaI, “I will not be going to the Court on Wednesday in that I do not want to distract from the importance of this Decision.
“It will be, in my opinion, one of the most important and consequential Decisions ever made by the United States Supreme Court,” he wrote.
This is developing news. Check back for updates.
