Attorney General Raúl Torrez Sues Trump Administration to Stop Illegal Tariffs

Attorney General Raúl Torrez joined a coalition of attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to block President Trump’s illegal tariffs that are increasing prices and inflicting chaos on the American economy. The case challenges four of President Trump’s executive orders that claim the power to increase tariffs worldwide without congressional action.

“The American people will pay more at the checkout line because of these unlawful tariffs imposed by the Trump administration,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “We were promised that prices would go down—but instead, these tariffs are driving up the cost of everyday goods for families across the country. Without a legitimate state of emergency, the President does not have the authority to unilaterally impose sweeping tariffs that hurt working Americans. Our communities should not have to shoulder the burden of bad policy decisions, and I will see this lawsuit through to ensure the American people are protected from unnecessary and unjustified financial strain.”

The lawsuit highlights that, under Article I of the Constitution, only Congress has the “Power to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.” In 1977, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) granted powers to the President to regulate certain foreign transactions only when an emergency presents “unusual and extraordinary threat” from abroad. No President had imposed tariffs based on IEEPA in the five decades since the inception prior to this administration. This lawsuit also highlights that:

• The President does not have the power to impose tariffs
• There was no unusual and extraordinary threat justifying the use of IEEPA
• The tariffs created by the President are not reasonably related to any purported emergency

Studies of the tariffs issued in Trump’s first presidential term show that 95 percent of the cost of the tariffs are paid by the American people. The Federal Reserve and the International Monetary Fund project that this round of tariffs will cause inflation.

In addition to challenging the executive orders calling for these higher tariffs, the lawsuit also challenges President Trump’s plan to raise tariffs on imports from 46 other trading partners on July 9. The current tariffs impose:

• A 145% tariff on most products from China
• A 25% tariff on most products from Canada and Mexico
• A 10% tariff on most products from the rest of the world.

The lawsuit (State of Oregon, et al., v. Trump, et al.) was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade and is led by Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes. Joining New Mexico in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New York and Vermont.

Original source can be found here.