24 US states suing to stop Trump’s latest global tariffs

A group of 24 US states will sue President Donald Trump’s administration on Thursday in the first legal challenge to his newly imposed 10 per cent global tariffs, alleging that the president cannot sidestep a recent US Supreme Court ruling that invalidated most of his previous tariffs on imported goods by citing new legal authority, according to ‌the states.

The Democratic-led states, including New York, California and Oregon, argue the new tariffs, which Trump announced immediately after the high court ruling on February 20, are also illegal.

The tariffs were imposed for 150 days under the Trade Act of 1974, which is meant to address short-term monetary emergencies, not routine trade deficits that arise when a wealthy nation like the United States imports more than it exports, according to the states’ lawsuit which will be filed in the New York-based US Court of International Trade.

“The focus right now ⁠should be on paying people back, not doubling down on illegal tariffs,” Oregon’s Attorney General Dan Rayfield said.

Trump’s February 20 executive order imposed a 10 per cent ‌tariff on imports, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that those rates would probably rise to 15 per cent later this week.

Trump has made tariffs a central pillar of his foreign policy in his second term, claiming sweeping authority ‌to issue tariffs without input from Congress.