Trump Seeks Supreme Court Review as Tariffs Hit Record $31 Billion in August

by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

(Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said Monday that his administration will petition the U.S. Supreme Court to expedite review of a federal appeals court decision that struck down most of his signature reciprocal tariffs.

“Now we’re going to be asking for early admittance where we’re going tomorrow, and we’re going to ask for … an expedited ruling,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, referring to the upcoming appeal of the Aug. 29 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. That court, in a 7–4 ruling, found that the president exceeded his lawful authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) when he imposed the tariffs.

The ruling is not set to take effect until Oct. 14, leaving the tariffs in place for now. Trump said removing them would devastate the U.S. economy. “Without the tariffs, this country is in serious, serious trouble. We’ve taken in almost $17 trillion of investment [which] is coming in. Most of it is coming because of tariffs,” he said. “If you took away tariffs, we could end up being a third-world country.”

The president has made tariffs the centerpiece of his second-term foreign policy, arguing that they bring manufacturing back to the U.S. and correct unfair trade practices. He also claimed that uncertainty about the legal status of the tariffs has unsettled markets. “The stock market’s down because of that. Because the stock market needs the tariffs. They want the tariffs,” he said.

The Federal Circuit majority rejected that argument, writing that Congress never gave presidents the authority to impose tariffs under IEEPA. “The statute neither mentions tariffs (or any of its synonyms) nor has procedural safeguards that contain clear limits on the President’s power to impose tariffs,” the court said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent underscored the stakes, announcing Sept. 2 that tariff revenues hit a record $31.37 billion in August, bringing the fiscal year total to $183.56 billion. “Now that August is in the books, tariff revenues topped over $31 billion in the month: a new record high,” Bessent posted on X. “As collection continues to grow, the Trump Administration is fixing the financial shambles it inherited.”

Bessent has said tariff revenues could exceed $500 billion annually, up from his earlier $300 billion projection, and possibly approach $1 trillion. The Congressional Budget Office recently estimated that tariffs could reduce the federal deficit by $4 trillion over a decade.

If the Supreme Court sides against the administration, Bessent said, the White House still has fallback options. “I’m confident the Supreme Court … will uphold the president’s authority to use IEEPA. And there are lots of other authorities that can be used—not as efficient, not as powerful,” he said.

Trump warned the justices against striking down his policies. “It’s a very important decision, and frankly, if they make the wrong decision, it would be a devastation for our country,” he said.

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