Twelve U.S. states filed a legal challenge on Wednesday against the additional tariffs imposed by former President Donald Trump, accusing the Republican billionaire of overstepping his authority by enacting these tariffs without Congressional approval.
اضافة اعلان
The legal challenge was brought by a coalition of 12 states, including Arizona, Oregon, New York, and Minnesota.
These states are following in the footsteps of California, which filed a similar lawsuit last week.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes stated in a press release, "President Trump's reckless tariff plan is not only economically irresponsible, it is also illegal."
Since his return to the White House three months ago, Trump has caused sharp declines in global financial markets by dismantling the rules of free trade that nations around the world have established over the past decades.
Trump launched a trade war—especially targeting China—by imposing a 10% tariff on U.S. imports from various countries and threatening even harsher tariffs if his demands are not met.
However, the lawsuit filed by the 12-state coalition on Wednesday argues that the 1977 law cited by Trump does not grant the president the authority to use emergency powers to impose tariffs, as this power is constitutionally reserved for Congress.
The 12 states stated in their lawsuit filed with the U.S. Court of International Trade: “By claiming the authority to impose broad, fluctuating tariffs on any product entering the United States, for any reason he deems sufficient to declare an emergency, the president has disrupted the constitutional order and thrown the U.S. economy into chaos.”
Attorney General Mayes added, “Regardless of what the White House claims, these tariffs are essentially taxes that will ultimately be passed on to consumers.” — (AFP)
