For President Trump, they were hardly fireworks.
But for a moment, the chief executive forced the four Supreme Court justices who showed up to his State of the Union to be stone-faced in front of millions of Americans as he railed against them and their decision striking down his global tariffs.
"The Supreme Court's unfortunate involvement," Trump called their majority decision to strike down a bulk of his tariffs by ruling his use of emergency powers to impose those duties as unlawful.
It marked the most direct call-out of the court at the address in years. Still, it hardly ranked among the president's most scorching burns.
Even Friday, hours after the ruling, Trump made clear he is "absolutely ashamed" of the six justices who ruled against him. Those six justices include two of whom Trump appointed, and one of which came to his speech -- Amy Coney Barrett.
Despite the obvious tension, things remained cordial Tuesday night as Trump walked down the aisle to greet the quartet who showed: Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Elena Kagan, Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Barrett.
You'd never know three of them -- Roberts, Kagan and Barrett -- just delivered a sledgehammer to his economic agenda as the president briefly shook each of their four's hands.
Roberts acknowledged him first. Kagan gave a slight nod. Kavanaugh exchanged a few words. At the end was Barrett, whom Trump called an embarrassment to her family just days ago for ruling against him.
"Thank you," the president said to Barrett as they shook hands.
The president's Supreme Court call out Tuesday night was planned. His prepared remarks included a direct broadside against the court.
Still, Trump made on-the-spot additions.
The prepared remarks read, "...therefore they will continue to work along the same successful path that we had negotiated before the Supreme Court's involvement."
It was Trump who added "unfortunate involvement."
Otherwise during the speech, the justices kept their seated, sober state that has become customary as other various factions bob up and down. Only a few moments were deemed uncontroversial enough for the justices to applaud, like when Trump recognized Team USA athletes.
And as the justices waited for the president's entrance, they were the popular kids in the lunchroom.
Attorney General Pam Bondi came to greet them, as did some lawmakers and other Cabinet memebers.
As four justices sat in Tuesday, five others did not.
The occasional attendees, like Justice Neil Gorsuch, sat this year out. The justice, Trump's first nomination to the high court, sided with Roberts, Barrett and the court's liberal flank in shunning Trump's tariffs — and, in a concurring opinion that drew significant attention, doubled down.
Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, who long ago spurned the annual address and haven't shown up in more than a decade, were again absent.
Alito never returned after another president directly called out the court. It was former President Obama, who in 2010 criticized the court's Citizens United decision on campaign finance handed down days earlier.
"Not true," Alito mouthed at the time, gaining instant notoriety.
On Tuesday, the justices learned Alito's lesson. They gave no reaction to Trump – and slipped out before the president could pass their seats again.
Speaking of tariffs, here's a run-down of everything you need to know as companies line up to get refunds for the invalidated tariffs. In the words of Barrett, it's a mess™.
Many questions remain, but here's five things we've learned so far:
1. Supreme Court gives no guidance: The Supreme Court's decision gives no guidance. Trump criticized the justices for not doing so. Expect the battle to head back to the U.S. Court of International Trade, where the legal fight began last year.
2. Trump administration has said it won't object to refunds. It insisted so over the past year in the trade court here, here, here, here, here and here. That position is locked in, the court ruled in December. However, some questions remain about companies whose tariff payments have already been finalized, a step known as "liquidation" that often takes place months after a good enters the country.
3. Watch for incoming trade court order: The trade court's chief judge paused all IEEPA lawsuits as the Supreme Court mulled the case. Before anything can resume, that pause must be lifted. The judge has signaled that order will also provide a roadmap for next steps.
4. Michigan auto parts store may become the face: A wine importer and toymaker led the Supreme Court case. In the battle for refunds, all signs point to AGS Company Automotive Solutions taking center stage. Hundreds of companies have filed refund lawsuits, but many were already consolidated with the Muskegon, Mich., auto parts store's docket. The Justice Department seems fine with that.
5. Look to the late 90s: The Supreme Court's unanimous 1998 decision striking down the Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) has emerged as a modern parallel. It took many companies two years to get refunds. And that involved a mere hundreds of millions of dollars, which pales in comparison to the estimated $100+ billion at stake now.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Keep a civil tongue.