Donald Trump attacks supreme court over tariffs again in late-night social media post
Good morning and welcome to the liveblog.
In a late-night social media post, Donald Trump asserted that he has the “absolute right” to impose new tariffs after many of the import duties he implemented last year were ruled illegal.
The president criticized the Supreme Court on Truth Social in a late-night message on Sunday, accusing it of having “unnecessarily RANSACKED” the US and failing to demonstrate sufficient loyalty to him.
Recently, the Supreme Court determined that the Trump administration did not provide adequate legal justification to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) — a 1977 law intended to address national emergencies — for many of the tariffs imposed on countries worldwide.
Callum notes that the administration has been working in recent weeks to reconstruct its controversial trade agenda and regain economic leverage.
In response, Trump has sought to impose tariffs under a different statute, section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act. However, these tariffs expire after 150 days, in July. Although the president pledged to raise this temporary duty to 15%, he has not yet done so.
US officials met last week, setting the stage for the potential imposition of a new wave of permanent tariffs to replace those repealed.
In his Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump wrote:
"Our Supreme Court has made these Countries very happy but, as the Court pointed out, I have the absolute right to charge TARIFFS in another form, and have already started to do so."
Meanwhile, the House will not be voting today, according to Tom Emmer, the GOP House majority whip. The first votes in the chamber are now expected to take place on Tuesday.
Trump draws backlash for comment on Iran war: ‘Maybe we shouldn’t even be there’
Donald Trump faced criticism on Sunday for suggesting that US efforts to protect the Strait of Hormuz were unnecessary and that “maybe we shouldn’t even be there at all” because the United States has ample oil of its own.
The president made the contradictory remarks to reporters aboard Air Force One after urging European and NATO allies to assist the US in securing the strait amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“Really, I’m demanding that these countries come in and protect their own territory – because it is their territory,” he said.
“They should come and they should help us protect it. You could make the case that maybe we shouldn’t even be there at all, because we don’t need it. We have a lot of oil. We’re the number one producer anywhere in the world times two.”
Trump’s comments came the same day he reversed his earlier stance on outside assistance and increased pressure on several countries to participate in defending the strait.
Australia, France, and Japan have stated they have no plans to send warships.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday that he was collaborating with European allies on “a viable plan” to reopen the strait but emphasized that the country “will not be drawn into the wider war.”
Luxembourg’s Deputy Prime Minister Xavier Bettel stated his country would not succumb to “blackmail” from the US.
During a briefing with reporters on Sunday as he returned to Washington from his weekend at Mar-a-Lago, Trump suggested the US effort to secure the strait benefits other countries.
“It’s almost like we do it for habit, but we also do it for some very good allies that we have in the Middle East,” he said.
In an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, his tone was more forceful, warning that NATO faces a “big problem” if it does not assist the US in protecting the strait from Iranian attacks.
One month into DHS shutdown, security lines snake around airports
As the federal shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reached one month, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees missed their first full paycheck over the weekend. At Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas, staff anticipated a record-breaking volume of passengers as security lines extended past the departures drop-off area at 4:30 a.m. local time on Monday.
By 9 a.m. ET, the lines had eased, according to airport officials. They expect slightly fewer travelers on Tuesday, approximately 32,000, but encouraged passengers to arrive early to mitigate long wait times.
Oil prices have risen again amid growing supply concerns following US strikes on Iran’s critical Kharg Island oil hub and Donald Trump’s calls for allies to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, increased 1.8% to $104.98 per barrel during early trading on Monday. Continued violence across the Middle East over the weekend intensified concerns about the conflict’s impact on global energy markets.
The US president claimed on Saturday that US strikes had “totally demolished” most of Kharg Island and suggested the military might target the site “a few more times just for fun.”
Kharg, a five-mile-long coral island in the Persian Gulf about 16 miles from the mainland, serves as a key processing hub for Iran, through which 90% of the country’s oil exports typically flow.
Trump stated on social media that he had avoided striking oil and energy infrastructure on the island “for reasons of decency,” and that only military targets had been hit.
However, the decision to strike Kharg, which had been largely untouched by the US-Israeli operation during its first two weeks, did not alleviate the apprehensions affecting global markets.
Donald Trump announced that he will hold a news conference before his lunch meeting with the Kennedy Center board members at 11:45 a.m. ET.
We will provide updates as the event begins.
A reminder that our colleagues are covering the latest developments in the Middle East at our dedicated live blog. You can follow our latest reporting on the US-Israel war on Iran here.
Donald Trump’s proposed meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping is not at risk but could be delayed as the US president remains focused on the Iran conflict, the White House said on Monday.
Trump is scheduled to travel to China from 31 March to 2 April for a highly anticipated meeting between the leaders of the world’s two largest economies.
“I don’t think the meeting is in jeopardy, but it’s quite possible the meeting could be delayed,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News’ Fox & Friends program.
This follows Trump’s statement to the Financial Times on Sunday that he might postpone the meeting if China does not assist in unblocking the Strait of Hormuz.
In his interview, the president said China’s dependence on Middle Eastern oil means it should support a new coalition he is attempting to form to facilitate oil tanker traffic through the strait. Trump said, “we’d like to know” before the trip whether Beijing will help. “We may delay,” he added.
Democratic FCC commissioner hits back at Carr's threats to cancel broadcaster permits over Iran war coverage
The sole Democratic member of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) responded to chair Brendan Carr’s threats to revoke broadcasters’ licenses for disseminating “hoaxes and news distortions.”
Carr stated that “fake news” outlets now “have a chance to correct course before their license renewals come up.”
“The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not,” Carr wrote on social media.
In response, Anna Gomez said that “the FCC can issue threats all day long, but it is powerless to carry them out.”
"Such threats violate the First Amendment and will go nowhere. Broadcasters should continue covering the news, fiercely and independently, without fear of government pressure."
This exchange comes amid routine accusations by Donald Trump and members of his administration against various news outlets for biased and unfavorable coverage of the war on Iran.
Donald Trump is in Washington today. The president is expected to appear alongside Vice President JD Vance later. This will be their first joint public appearance since the war on Iran began. Their Oval Office meeting at 3:30 p.m. ET is open to the press, and we will provide updates as it proceeds.
Between closed-door policy meetings and executive time, Trump will attend a lunch with Kennedy Center board members at 11:45 a.m. ET and meet with US Ambassador to Japan George Glass at 4 p.m. ET.
Additional updates will be provided if other events become public.
In his Truth Social post, although Trump praised the conservative justices on the bench who supported his tariff justification — Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Brett Kavanaugh — he criticized the other justices as “completely inept and embarrassing.”
This represents the latest instance of the president’s criticism of the judiciary for what he perceives as personal and political attacks on his policy agenda.
He also targeted James Boasberg, the DC-based federal judge overseeing Justice Department subpoenas for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
The president accused Boasberg of suffering from “the highest level of Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS)” and exhibiting “open, flagrant, and extreme partisan bias” against Republicans and the White House. Boasberg was also the judge who ruled in April last year that the Justice Department appeared to have acted “in bad faith” when it used the rarely invoked Alien Enemies Act to deport hundreds of Venezuelans to a mega prison in El Salvador.
