Supreme Court ruling on emergency tariffs reduces President Trump leverage says Bessent
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said today that a Supreme Court ruling has reduced President Trump's leverage. Trump plans to use other laws for new tariffs.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday struck down tariffs that had been imposed under a law meant for use in national emergencies, a decision that significantly alters the structural constraints on trade policy in the US 
US. The ruling, issued on February 20, 2026, removes the legal basis for presidential emergency tariff authority that the administration had previously utilized.
US. The ruling, issued on February 20, 2026, removes the legal basis for presidential emergency tariff authority that the administration had previously utilized.Following the decision, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, representing the U.S. Treasury Department, stated that the court's ruling effectively removed President Donald Trump’s leverage over tariffs. The ruling specifically targeted the use of a law meant for use in national emergencies to justify trade levies, prompting an immediate response from the executive branch.
