Extract from ABC News
Donald Trump said he was "absolutely ashamed" of the Supreme Court justices who ruled against his tariffs. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)
In short:
US President Donald Trump has lashed out at members of the Supreme Court who struck down his global tariffs after finding he had no authority to implement them.
The decision means the US may be forced to pay back more than $US100 billion in tariffs already collected.
What's next?
Mr Trump has vowed to find other ways to implement tariffs, using laws unrelated to the court decision. He said he would issue an order for a 10 per cent global tariff later in the day.
The US Supreme Court has handed down a bombshell ruling against President Donald Trump's global tariffs, deeming them illegal and killing them off.
A furious Mr Trump responded by attacking the court's justices as "fools and lapdogs" and vowing to resurrect the controversial import taxes, starting with a new global tariff of 10 per cent.
The court ruled 6-3 to uphold a lower court's previous finding that Mr Trump had illegally imposed tariffs under a law meant for national emergencies.
The decision is the most significant and consequential court strike-down of a Trump policy since his return to the presidency.
In an extraordinary press conference afterwards, Mr Trump said he was "absolutely ashamed" of the justices who ruled against him "for not having the courage to do what's right for our country". Without evidence, he said they were "swayed by foreign interests".
The decision means the US may now have to refund more than $US100 billion to businesses that paid the tariffs. However, it is unclear how any refund process would work, and the court decision did not provide clear guidance.
"Foreign countries that have been ripping us off for years are ecstatic, they're so happy, and they're dancing in the streets," Mr Trump said.
"But they won't be dancing for long."
Mr Trump said he would introduce new tariffs using legislation unrelated to the court ruling and that they could be "potentially higher" than the previous tariffs.
He said he would sign an order for the new global 10 per cent tariff later on Friday, local time, under a section of the US Trade Act that allows him to impose the import taxes for up to 150 days.
Legal experts say the Supreme Court decision is likely to spark a flurry of new claims in lower courts.
Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who disagreed with the majority decision, wrote: "As was acknowledged at oral argument, the refund process is likely to be a 'mess'.
"The United States may be required to refund billions of dollars to importers who paid the IEEPA tariffs, even though some importers may have already passed on costs to consumers or others."
The decision does not apply to product-specific tariffs on steel, aluminium, copper, cars and car parts, timber and furniture.
Windfall hopes
Mr Trump angered many of America's trading partners when he announced so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on imports from more than 180 countries last April.
Those tariffs ranged from 10 per cent, which was the minimum "baseline" amount, up to 49 per cent for Cambodia and 48 per cent for Laos.
Australian exports were subject to the 10 per cent baseline tariff. At the time, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the tariffs as "entirely unjustified" and "not a friendly act".
Donald Trump announced his so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on products from more than 180 countries last April. (Reuters: Carlos Barria)
Mr Trump removed tariffs from some food items in November as he faced pressure to lower living costs.
Australian exporters to the US are now hopeful of a windfall.
The ABC this week reported modelling by consulting firm EY Australia had found Australian businesses could be owed more than $1.4 billion in refunds if the tariffs were deemed illegal.
"Timing will be critical," EY Oceania global trade leader Luke Branson told the ABC after the ruling.
He advised businesses to begin the process of reviewing records and preparing paperwork "to preserve potential refund rights within statutory time limits".
No authority
The decision is the result of legal action taken by a coalition of small businesses and a group of US states.
They argued Mr Trump overstepped his authority by imposing tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
The law gives the president broad powers over economic transactions in the event of a national emergency.
Mr Trump declared two national emergencies to justify the tariffs.
One related to the "influx of illegal drugs" from Canada, Mexico and China, which he said had created a "public health crisis".
The other was due to "large and persistent" trade deficits, which had "undermined critical supply chains".
But the Supreme Court found that the "IEEPA does not authorise the president to impose tariffs" and the power instead lies with Congress.
"The president must 'point to clear congressional authorisation' to justify his extraordinary assertion of the power to impose tariffs," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote. "He cannot."
California's Democratic governor Gavin Newsom, whose state was among those that sued to stop the tariffs, said the decision was a "huge win for families and small businesses across the country who have been suffering under this man's ego".
Mike Pence, who served as Mr Trump's vice-president in his first term but has been a vocal opponent of his tariffs, said it meant "American families and businesses can breathe a sigh of relief".
Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito joined Justice Kavanaugh in dissenting from the majority decision.
"The tariffs at issue here may or may not be wise policy," Justice Kavanaugh wrote. "But as a matter of text, history, and precedent, they are clearly lawful."
But two Trump appointees to the court, Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch, sided with Chief Justice Roberts and the court's left-leaning justices to strike the tariffs down.
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