Trump says he will not attend Supreme Court arguments on the tariff issue

President Trump said Sunday that he will not attend Supreme Court arguments this week in a case challenging his authority to impose sweeping tariffs on other countries after previously floating the idea.

“I will not be going to court on Wednesday because I do not want to distract from the importance of this decision,” Trump said on Truth Social. “This will be, in my opinion, one of the most important decisions ever made by the United States Supreme Court. If we win, we will be the richest and safest country anywhere in the world, by far. If we lose, our country could regress to almost Third World status — I pray to God that doesn’t happen!”

In his social media post, Trump claimed that depriving the president of his ability to impose sweeping tariffs could “destroy our nation.”

The Supreme Court on Wednesday will consider whether Trump can use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose broad sweeping tariffs on imports from other countries.

Trump is the first president to attempt to impose tariffs by invoking the law.

Last month, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, by a 7-4 vote, affirmed a lower court’s ruling that the tariffs were impermissible under the law. This lawsuit was brought by five small businesses and dozens of Democratic-led states.

While economists have warned that Trump’s aggressive use of tariffs will lead to higher prices for consumers, administration officials have argued that it gives Trump leverage to negotiate trade deals.