A federal appeals court appeared skeptical of President Donald Trump‘s sweeping tariff policy on Thursday, grilling the Justice Department on whether the president implemented the key part of his trade policy lawfully.
The 11-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit heard arguments in a legal challenge to the bulk of Trump’s tariffs in a case that appears destined to end up at the Supreme Court.
Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate, who argued for the Trump administration, asserted to the judges that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act granted Trump the power to levy his sweeping tariffs to deal with declared emergencies over the flow of fentanyl into the United States via Canada, China, and Mexico, along with the significant trade deficit the U.S. has with dozens of countries around the world.
The appeals court panel questioned Shumate at the beginning of the nearly two-hour hearing about whether IEEPA allows the president to impose tariffs, specifically pointing out that the term “tariffs” does not appear in the text of the law.
Shumate pointed to the 1975 decision in United States v. Yoshida International, which he said “recognized that the phrase ‘regulate importation’ authorized tariffs,” but the judges remained skeptical of his interpretation of the ruling and IEEPA’s ability to give the president broad tariff authority.
The appeals court panel sharply questioned the Trump administration’s characterization of the trade deficit as an emergency that allows the president to impose the tariffs. The DOJ’s arguments were met with significant cynicism as judges peppered Shumate with questions.
While the panel was largely skeptical of the DOJ’s arguments, lawyers for the administration’s opponents also faced sharp questioning.
Oregon Solicitor General Benjamin Gutman, arguing on behalf of the states suing the Trump administration, was grilled on the assertion that the emergency Trump declared was over “persistent trade deficits,” which he said are not an “unusual and extraordinary threat.”
Opponents of the president’s tariffs have contended that IEEPA does not confer tariff power to Trump and that Congress members should decide whether tariffs are imposed. The Pacific Legal Foundation, which filed an amicus brief in the case and launched a separate lawsuit against Trump’s tariffs, is hopeful the panel will strike down the tariffs, as a lower court previously did in May.
“The question in this case is simple,” Oliver Dunford, senior attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, said in a statement. “Who decides? And the answer is just as simple: Congress. In the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, Congress did not authorize the President to impose tariffs on goods from virtually every country in the world. In fact, IEEPA says nothing about tariffs.”
“We’re hopeful the judges on the Federal Circuit follow the Constitution and recognize that Congress, not the President, makes the law,” Dunford added.
The panel of judges, which did not include suspended Judge Pauline Newman, did not provide a timeline for when it would rule on the case at the conclusion of the hearing. The court is made up of mostly Democrat-appointed judges and has no Trump-appointed judges. Both sides have indicated they will appeal an unfavorable ruling to the Supreme Court, where it appears the legality of the tariffs will ultimately be decided.
The lawsuit largely targets Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, which include a baseline 10% tariff globally along with higher “reciprocal” rates for select countries. The sweeping tariff plan has led to various trade deals, which the Trump administration has touted, including with the United Kingdom.
The DOJ argued in a brief to the court that striking down the president’s tariffs would “disrupt the Executive Branch’s ongoing, sensitive diplomatic negotiations with virtually every major trading partner.”
Trump has paused his higher “reciprocal” tariff rates since they were unveiled in April, but has vowed to end the pause Friday. He has warned countries to negotiate to avoid the increased duties on their imports to the U.S.
TRUMP’S TARIFFS FACE MAJOR TEST BEFORE FEDERAL APPEALS COURT
Ahead of Thursday’s oral argument, Trump wished his lawyers “good luck” as the fate of a key component of his trade policy is being decided in the courts.
“If our Country was not able to protect itself by using TARIFFS AGAINST TARIFFS, WE WOULD BE ‘DEAD,’ WITH NO CHANCE OF SURVIVAL OR SUCCESS,” Trump said Thursday morning in a post on Truth Social.