WOOT!! COURT OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE TELLS TRUMP “TALK TO THE HAND – NO DICE TO YOUR SNEAKY ALTERNATIVE TARIFFS”!
(Reposting this for those who didn’t see it because of the late hour that it was posted yesterday.)
Just a few hours ago the United States Court of International Trade (CIT) granted the State of Washington’s and two other plaintiffs’ motion for *summary judgement*, dashing to the ground, hard, Trump’s attempt to get around the Supreme Court’s rejection of his tariffs by using §122 of the Trade Act of 1974 as an alternative way to impose the tariffs that, again, the Supreme Court rejected. (I’m very grateful to friend and colleague Ty Cobb for getting the decision and order to me hot off the presses!)
There were actually many, many plaintiff states, but the Court found that only three plaintiffs had standing: the State of Washington and two businesses that joined the lawsuit, Basic Fun (a toy company) and Burlap and Barrel (what Trump will be wearing once a fair and proper administration takes power again, although plaintiff Burlap and Barrel is actually a spice importing company). So the order only applies to those three plaintiffs *but* you can bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there’ll be more lawsuits in other jurisdictions modeled on this lawsuit.
You see, §122 of the Trade Act of 1974 says that the president can impose temporary tariffs of up to 15%, for no more than 150 days, for, and I quote, “fundamental international payments problems.”
I would submit that any fundamental international payments problems happening right now are problems *created by Trump*.
What §122 says are fundamental international payments problems include such things as “large and serious United States balance-of-payments deficits, an imminent and significant depreciation of its currency in foreign exchange markets, or an international balance-of-payments disequilibrium.”
Shortly after the Supreme Court ruling holding Trump’s tariffs illegal, Trump, citing §122, issued “Proclamation No. 11012, Imposing a Temporary Import Surcharge to Address Fundamental International Payments Problems”.
And just like with his bogus Executive Orders, naming something doesn’t make it so. I could have named Lily “Kitty”, but she still wouldn’t be a cat.
Now, this is an 88-page decision, *full* of all sorts of world moneys language, balance of trade language, trade deficit language, etc.. To be honest this sort of stuff makes me go cross-eyed, so I am not going to get into the weeds with it (although you are welcome to, it is of course included for Notes from the Front members – my economist and import/export geeks will love it, I am sure!)
The bottom line, however, is that the Court held that, and again I quote, “Proclamation No. 11012 is invalid, and the tariffs
imposed on Plaintiffs are unauthorized by law.”
Notes from the Front members: The 88-page decision and order for *summary judgement* (yay!) is in your inbox now!
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P.S. If you actually read all the way to the bottom please leave a comment that includes the word “kitty”! It will show me that my efforts aren’t in vain and that people actually *do* read these things, and it will drive those who just skim crazy wondering why everyone is talking kitties! ;~)
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