12/29/25 Afternoon CommStock Report – The Supreme Courts Supreme Decision on Tariffs

One day soon, shortly after the New Year, the US Supreme Court is going to rule on the issue as to whether the tariffs that president Trump has imposed on goods imported into the US are valid under executive power without further Congressional approval. Tariffs are taxes and one of the reasons why the USA rebelled from Great Britain was “taxation without representation”. The US Congress is considered to be the representative legislative body in the US. The Smoot-Hawley Tariffs of 1930 were enacted first by Congress and then sent to the President to be signed. The GOP controlled Congress has not challenged Trump’s use of tariffs. Tariffs are imposed on importers but their cost is passed on so Americans ultimately pay them. Congress retains the power to tax and tariffs are a form of taxation. They are arguably the largest tax increase ever imposed in decades and Congress watched from the sidelines. Congress has not challenged Trump’s tariffs due to successful political intimidation.   Congress is waiting on the Supreme Court to provide them some courage. There are existing statutes enacted by Congress that allow the president to impose tariffs but they are narrow in scope. Trump’s tariffs are…