SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down most of President Trump's tariffs, declaring them to be unconstitutional under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The president has responded by declaring a new tariff, which he said today he would increase. We're joined now by NPR's Ron Elving. Ron, thanks for being with us.
RON ELVING, BYLINE: It's good to be with you, Scott.
SIMON: The Supreme Court's decision was 6 to 3. Three conservative justices joined court liberals. The president called the decision a disgrace to the nation. What's at the heart of their decision?
ELVING: It's the Constitution which gives the power to tax to the Congress, and tariffs are a form of tax. Chief Justice John Roberts read his own decision aloud in the courtroom yesterday, and the first 10 minutes were all about this issue. The president's use of tariffs was decidedly outside the president's proper authority, the court ruled, even under the emergency legislation you mentioned. Trump responded by going off on the six Supreme Court justices who decided the case - three appointed by Democrats, three by Republican, including two Trump appointed himself - saying they had brought shame on the nation and were an embarrassment to their families - their families.
Asked if these justices would still be welcome at the State of the Union speech at the Capitol this week, Trump said they were barely invite and he didn't care if they came or not. And just for the record, the State of the Union is not a presidential invitation event. He is, in fact, an invited guest of Congress.
SIMON: Ron, how is the president using the court decision to announce a new 10% global tariff, which he just said this morning he would increase to 15%?
ELVING: Well, while we have everyone's attention, using a different statute with a time limit, he's going to go from 10, which he announced yesterday to 15, which he announced this morning with a line in a post truth social. Now, that post has to be read several times to believe he wrote it. It sounds like a Saturday night parody of Trump. He calls the decision ridiculous, poorly written and extraordinarily anti-American. But it has long been a feature of the Trump style that when he suffers a setback, he spins it around and calls it a win, as he did live for the cameras yesterday. Here he is.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: While I am sure that they did not mean to do so, the Supreme Court's decision today made a president's ability to both regulate trade and impose tariffs more powerful and more crystal clear, rather than less.
ELVING: Trump routinely says this kind of thing, knowing it will resonate within a certain media sphere and among a certain kind of followers. But if the court had given him a kind of boost like he just described, would he have called them a national disgrace and an embarrassment to their families?
SIMON: Ron, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested this week, under investigation for sharing confidential government documents with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. It's irresistible to note we haven't seen that kind of consequence for any of the officials or former officials involved with Epstein in the U.S.
ELVING: No. But first, you just have to say, if you're looking for a case of someone who is a national disgrace and an embarrassment to his family, the former Prince Andrew fills the bill, although some people with far less involvement with Epstein have seen fit to resign their jobs outside the government or have apologized. One administration official with Epstein ties, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik, was there yesterday at Trump's side at that news conference looking very secure. But consider how hard it would be for Trump to start holding his people responsible on Epstein ties after all these months of saying that the whole Epstein saga was nothing but a hoax.
SIMON: Ron Elving, thanks so much for being with us. Look forward to speaking with you next week.
ELVING: Thank you, Scott. Me, too. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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