President Donald Trump announced Friday that he will sign an executive order imposing a new 10% “universal tariff” hours after the Supreme Court struck down a wide range of “reciprocal” import tariffs in a major rebuke of Trump’s trade policies.
President Trump expressed outrage at the “very disappointing” ruling at a White House press conference, saying the new “Section 122” tariffs would be imposed on top of the surcharges left in place after the high court’s ruling.
“I’m ashamed of some of the people on the court, and I’m totally ashamed of their lack of courage to do what’s right for our country,” Trump said.
The court’s ruling invalidated much of the legal backing for the tariffs that President Trump has argued are essential to rebuilding the U.S. economy and America’s shrinking manufacturing base.
The judges canceled the tariffs that President Trump imposed using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Both President Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs and drug-trafficking-related tariffs were covered by the same law.
On Friday, the majority ruled that IEEPA “does not authorize the President to impose tariffs.”
A White House official told CNBC late Friday that the newly proposed 10% tariffs, which would last for 150 days, would effectively replace the IEEPA tariffs.
This could mean lower U.S. tariff rates for some countries that have signed or continue trade deals with the Trump administration.
Many of these countries and regions faced U.S. tariffs of more than 10% as part of the deal. For example, the European Union agreed to 15% tariffs as part of its trade deal with the United States.
These tariffs were primarily implemented under IEEPA and were therefore invalidated as a result of the Supreme Court’s decision.
This restructuring could be significant for China, which faces two sets of 10% tariffs from the United States under IEEPA, on top of the ongoing 25% tariff. These IEEPA tariffs will be replaced by President Trump’s new global tariffs, totaling China’s tax rate of 35%, a White House official told CNBC.
President Trump has been adamant that he will find another way to impose tariffs without Congress. And White House officials noted that as the administration works on additional legal tariff channels, the tax rates imposed on countries could return to higher levels.
Asked at a press conference Friday why he didn’t want to work with the Legislature, Trump said, “There’s no need. I have the right to impose tariffs.”
President Trump’s comments oscillated between defiant and scathing. He even went after his own appointees, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, after voting with the majority in the 6-3 tariff ruling.
“I think their decision was a terrible one,” Trump said. “I think it’s embarrassing for their families. They both want to know the truth.”
He said he plans to sign an order imposing a new 10% tariff late Friday, invoking Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act. Tariffs enacted under the law last only 150 days, and any extension requires Congressional approval.
“We have the right to do pretty much anything we want to do,” Trump said at a news conference, when asked about the deadline and getting support from Congress.
President Trump also declared that all tariffs imposed under the laws known as Sections 232 and 301 “remain in full force and effect.”
The Trump administration has also invoked Section 301 to launch multiple investigations into possible unfair trade practices, which could result in additional new tariffs, Trump said.
Most of the US tariff revenue generated last year came from IEEPA tariffs.
President Trump said Friday that “other alternatives will be used in the future to replace the proposal that the courts have wrongly rejected.”
“We will accept more funding and will be even stronger because of it,” he said.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking at the Dallas Economic Club shortly after President Trump, said the administration intends to replace the rejected IEEPA tariffs by leveraging a number of other existing tariff laws.
That way, “tariff revenue in 2026 would be essentially unchanged,” Bessent said. “No one should expect customs revenue to decline.”
—CNBC’s Eamon Javers contributed to this report.
