Supreme Court says it will hear the legality of Trump’s tariffs

The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will quickly decide whether most of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs — a key part of his economic agenda — are legal.

The revelation follows the Trump administration’s request for the nation’s highest court to take up its appeal of a lower ruling. The Supreme Court placed the case on a fast track and scheduled oral arguments for the first week of its November session.

The White House defended Trump’s tariffs as a legitimate use of presidential powers to protect the economy in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

“We look forward to ultimate victory on this matter with the Supreme Court,” wrote White House spokesperson Kush Desai.

A federal appeals court ruled on Aug. 29, that Trump overstepped his authority by using emergency powers to impose new tariffs on imported goods. The court said that power lies squarely with Congress or within existing trade policy frameworks. The court allowed the tariffs to remain in effect until mid-October. 

The August decision does not extend to the tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum imports. 

TRUMP CALLS TARIFF WINDFALL ‘SO BEAUTIFUL TO SEE’ AS CASH SAILS IN

A container ship sails out of the port in Qingdao, in China’s eastern Shandong province on Aug. 7.  (STR/AFP/Getty Images / Getty Images)

The setback chips away at Trump’s trade policy, long a centerpiece of his economic agenda, which leans heavily on tariffs to raise revenue and exert pressure on foreign trading partners. 

Trump has long touted tariffs as a key source of government revenue, and within months of his sweeping trade policies taking effect, billions of dollars had already flowed into federal coffers.

TRUMP SAYS US WOULD BE ‘DESTROYED’ WITHOUT TARIFF REVENUE

So far in September, the U.S. has brought in $1.7 billion, according to the latest Treasury statement released on Sept. 8. That figure pushes the total tariff revenue for 2025 to a little more than $185 billion, according to the latest “Customs and Certain Excise Taxes” figures complied by the Treasury Department. 

A year-over-year comparison of tariff collections. (U.S. Treasury / Fox News)

Revenue from import duties rose steadily from $17.4 billion in April to $23.9 billion in May, before climbing to $28 billion in June and reaching $29 billion in July. In August, the U.S. collected $31.4 billion in tariff revenues, the largest monthly haul so far in 2025.

At the current pace, the U.S. could potentially collect as much tariff revenue in just a few months as it did during the entire previous year. 

Trump has previously said that the revenue from duties could offset the cost of his “one, big beautiful bill” and add hundreds of billions to the U.S. economy.

U.S. President Donald Trump alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on April 24, 2025.  (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has previously said that part of the tariff revenue could be applied toward lowering the national debt. The nation’s debt is nearing $37.5 trillion as of Sept. 8, according to the Treasury Department. 

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The staggering figure has intensified the long-standing debate in Washington over government spending, taxation and efforts to rein in the ballooning deficit.