Trump steps up his message to the US Supreme Court: If an unfavorable tariff ruling is made, America will not be able to bear the cost.
```
The most far-reaching tariff policy implemented by U.S. President Trump is facing a milestone test regarding presidential power.
On Monday local time, Trump posted on his social media "Truth Social" stating that if the U.S. Supreme Court makes an unfavorable tariff ruling for the United States for any reason, the U.S. will face actual compensation of hundreds of billions of dollars.
Trump stated that this does not include the "reimbursement" amount for investments made by the government and related companies in building factories and equipment to avoid paying tariffs. When these amounts are added together, it will be trillions of dollars.
Trump said, "This will be a mess, our country will almost be unable to pay the fees," "If the Supreme Court makes an unfavorable ruling for the United States on this national security wealth, we are finished!"
In recent weeks, Trump himself has frequently expressed concerns about the ruling, saying that if the ability to impose tariffs on other countries is lost, the United States will suffer a "heavy blow". On Monday, his language was even more intense.
On January 6 local time, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would rule on the legality of the tariff policy on the 9th of this month. However, on the 9th, the Supreme Court said it would not make a ruling on the Trump administration's tariff case that day. The court stated that the next date for announcing the verdict would be Wednesday, January 14.
After coming to power in 2025, the Trump administration invoked the U.S. "International Emergency Economic Powers Act" to unveil a series of tariff-raising measures via executive orders without Congressional approval, causing a series of legal challenges domestically.
Regardless of the final ruling, the case is under close scrutiny. Many companies, including Costco, have already sued the U.S. government, hoping to get refunds on import tariffs paid if the court denies Trump's power to levy tariffs.
The Supreme Court heard related oral arguments in early November last year. Both conservative and liberal justices questioned the approach used by Trump to implement these large-scale tariffs. The Trump administration also appealed to the court on this issue last year.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent recently stated in an interview that if the Supreme Court rules against Trump's tariff policy—though he still thinks it's unlikely—the U.S. Treasury has enough funds to pay any potential refunds. However, Bessent believes companies won't pass the refunds to consumers:
If refunds are really needed, it will not be a problem, but I can tell you, if it does happen, although I don't think it will, it will just be a money-grabbing farce by corporations. Like Costco, which sued the U.S. government, will they really return the money to their own customers?
Risk Warning and DisclaimerMarkets have risks, investment requires caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and does not take into account the special investment objectives, financial situation, or needs of individual users. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article suit their particular circumstances. If you invest accordingly, you do so at your own risk.```