U. S. President Donald Trump
(Reuters) – U. S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to impose a tariff on all Mexican goods to push Mexico to halt a surge in illegal immigrants is likely to be challenged in court and will test the scope of the president’s emergency powers.
Trump dramatically intensified his quest to limit a wave of asylum seekers arriving at the U. S.-Mexico border, including families fleeing violence in Central America, by threatening to impose the tariffs starting on June 10.
Financial markets reeled and business leaders on both sides of the border were taken by surprise, prompting discussions of legal action to curtail Republican Trump’s use of a law never previously applied to impose tariffs.
Jennifer Hillman, a Georgetown Law school trade law professor, questioned Trump’s citation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in his announcement on Thursday night.
“If you read the text of IEEPA, it’s about the president being able to declare a national emergency to be able to stop financial transactions,” said Hillman, a former World Trade Organization judge.
The law has been used by presidents to impose sanctions on countries such as Iran and Sudan but Trump’s proposed novel application of it has never been addressed by the courts, according to legal experts.
“It’s clearly beyond the spirit of the law,” said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School. “But is it within the letter of the law? Possibly.”
Some legal experts said that unlike many of Trump’s immigration policies that have been blocked by courts, the tariff threat may survive a challenge because it was wrapped up as a national security measure.
Challengers would have to show the president was acting outside the letter of the law and national security interest, a difficult standard to meet because of the wide authority given to the executive branch under the act.
