Trade court strikes down Trump’s second attempt at global tariffs

A federal trade court on Thursday struck down President Trump’s attempt to impose a 10% global tariff after he suffered a loss in the Supreme Court on a separate set of major levies.

A three-judge panel of the Court of International Trade ruled 2-1 in favor of companies that sued Mr. Trump’s decision to impose new tariffs under Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act.

The court said the levies are “invalid and the rates imposed on plaintiffs are not authorized by law.”

The plaintiffs said Section 122 was misapplied because the law was designed to address “balance of payments” problems, such as currency imbalances and other economic problems, rather than to resolve a trade deficit, as Mr. Trump envisioned.

“Rather than identifying “balance of payments deficits” as this term was intended in 1974, the proclamation [by Mr. Trump] is based on current account deficits and a discussion of “a large and serious trade deficit,” the court wrote.

The ruling, if upheld on appeal, would be another setback for Mr. Trump’s trade agenda after the Supreme Court ruled in February that the administration erred in invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act last year to impose nation-by-nation tariffs.

Mr. Trump imposed new tariffs, which are duties on imported products, under Section 122 to temporarily fill these previous tariffs while he conducts investigations that could impose sectoral levies on foreign products.

Mr. Trump says tariffs are a great way to protect American jobs, create revenue and provide leverage over other countries.

Small businesses and other critics say the tariffs are actually a new tax imposed on U.S. entities that pay the tariffs to U.S. Customs and on consumers who face higher prices as a result.

“Once again, a federal court has confirmed what we already knew: Trump’s tariffs are an illegal tax on American workers,” said Rep. Brendan Boyle, Democrat of Pennsylvania and ranking member of the House Budget Committee.

The Washington Times has contacted the White House for comment on the latest decision.

Even before the high court intervened, Mr. Trump had used Section 232 tariffs to rebuild manufacturing in key sectors, including steel, aluminum, copper, lumber, automobiles and trucks.

Mr. Trump may have to rely even more on these authorities to piece together his tariff framework if he faces a second defeat in court.