Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday said the Trump administration will still implement its ambitious tariffs should the Supreme Court rule against President Donald Trump's use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose levies on trading partners.
Speaking at the DealBook Summit of business leaders and political figures in New York, Bessent echoed statements he made last month, citing Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which authorizes tariffs on national security grounds, and Section 122 and Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which target unfair trade practices.
"We can re-create the exact tariff structure with [sections] 301, with 232, with 122," he said at the summit, sponsored by The New York Times.
When asked by Andrew Ross Sorkin, co-host of CNBC's "Squawk Box," whether the administration would have to implement those measures permanently, Bessent said, "Permanently."
Section 122 allows for tariff authority lasting up to 150 days, while Sections 232 and 301 are less definitive on duration, according to CNBC.
Bessent also cited the IEEPA as providing broad tariff authority, though that is the provision under scrutiny by the Supreme Court.
The high court's ruling, expected later this term, could shape how much latitude future presidents have in wielding emergency powers for economic or trade policy.
Bessent said one success of the administration's tariffs policy has been with China, despite tension between the nations.
"Because of the fentanyl tariffs, the Chinese" have made "a robust effort" at halting the export of precursors for the drug, he said.
He added that he still thinks the U.S. stands a good chance of prevailing in the Supreme Court case.
Bessent also said he was confident China would honor its commitments to buy American farm products as part of a trade deal agreed to last month by Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea. China had stopped buying American soybeans in retaliation for Trump's tariffs.
The deal resulted in China pledging to buy 12 million metric tons of soybeans from the U.S. this year, and Bessent said it was on pace to do so by the end of February.
China also committed to buying at least 25 million metric tons of soybeans in each of the next three years. The 25 million metric tons align with the 25 to 30 million metric tons it purchased in previous years.
In his latest warning aimed at the Supreme Court, Trump said that unwinding his tariff policy by giving in to litigious obstructionists would be an "insurmountable national security event" that could "devastate" more than $3 trillion in U.S. wealth.
"The U.S. Supreme Court was given the wrong numbers," Trump wrote Tuesday on Truth Social. "The 'unwind' in the event of a negative decision on Tariffs, would be, including investments made, to be made, and return of funds, in excess of 3 Trillion Dollars.
"It would not be possible to ever make up for that kind of a 'drubbing.' That would truly become an insurmountable National Security Event and devastating to the future of our Country – Possibly non-sustainable!"
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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