President Donald Trump‘s global tariffs were declared illegal and blocked by a federal court on Wednesday in a massive blow to his administration.
The ruling from a three-judge panel at the New York-based Court of International Trade came after several lawsuits from Democratic-led states and a group of small businesses argued Trump had wrongfully invoked an emergency law to justify the levies.
The court agreed.
‘The Worldwide and Retaliatory Tariff Orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA to regulate importation by means of tariffs,’ the court wrote, referring to the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
The Trump administration is expected to appeal.
President Donald Trump’s tariffs dealt massive blow
Trump left U.S. trade policy dependent on his whims and unleashed economic chaos when he announced a series of tariffs on countries around the world.
At least seven lawsuits challenged the tariffs, the centerpiece of Trump´s trade policy.
Tariffs must typically be approved by Congress, but Trump argues he has the power to act because the country´s trade deficits amount to a national emergency.
The ruling was a massive setback from the president who is facing numerous lawsuits challenging his use of his executive power.
