Says that as president, ‘I do not have to go back to Congress to get approval of tariffs’
US President Donald Trump speaks during a press briefing at the White House, following the Supreme Court’s ruling that Trump had exceeded his authority when he imposed tariffs, in Washington, DC, US, February 20, 2026.PHOTO: REUTERS
President Donald Trump threatened nations on Monday with punishing hikes on import duties if they choose to “play games” after the United States Supreme Court struck down his global tariffs last week.
“Any country that wants to ‘play games’ with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have ‘ripped off’ the USA for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to,” Trump wrote on social media.
The high court’s decision has dealt a sharp blow to Trump’s economic agenda, of which tariffs — and his ability to impose them rapidly — have been a key feature.
For now, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has said that he expects partners to “stand by” the tariff deals they have struck with Washington.
Trump said on Saturday he would raise a temporary tariff from 10% to 15% on US imports from all countries, the maximum level allowed under the law, a day after the court ruled that Trump had exceeded his presidential authority when he imposed an array of higher tariff rates under an economic emergency law.
Trump insisted in a separate Truth Social post that “as president, I do not have to go back to Congress to get approval of tariffs.”
He also claimed that the court gave him “far more powers and strength” with its ruling, and that he could use “licences to do absolutely ‘terrible’ things to foreign countries”.
Earlier, Trump renewed his condemnation of the court, vowing to turn to other tariff powers and licences but giving no details.
“The court has also approved all other tariffs, of which there are many, and they can all be used in a much more powerful and obnoxious way, with legal certainty, than the tariffs as initially used,” he wrote in a social media post.
In his post today, Trump also pointed to the potential use of licenses to pressure countries, writing that “incomprehensibly, according to the ruling, [I] can’t charge them a licence fee — but all licences are charge fees, why can’t the United States do so? You do a licence to get a fee! The opinion doesn’t explain that, but I know the answer!”
Read More: Trump says he will raise US global tariff rate from 10% to 15%
Wall Street futures and the dollar dropped early today amid confusion over the US trade policy, while oil prices initially fell over uncertainty for global growth and fuel demand over the latest tariff hike before being steadied by news of planned US-Iran talks.
The decision and Trump’s subsequent actions are already impacting his trade deals struck over the past year, with China urging Washington to scrap tariff measures, the European Union set to freeze its agreement and India delaying planned talks.
Trump used his social media post to again lash out against the justices who ruled against him, which included two who he had appointed during his first term in the White House. In its ruling, authored by conservative Chief Justice John Roberts, the court reasserted its power to check the power of the president.
The president also expressed concern that the top court could rule against his administration’s bid to restrict birthright citizenship in its forthcoming decision in that case.
India delayed US trade talks
India has delayed plans to send a trade delegation to Washington this week, chiefly because of uncertainty after the US Supreme Court struck down the tariffs, a source in its trade ministry said on Sunday.
It was one of the first concrete reactions among Asian nations to the decision.
