Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday there are other options in the event of defeat, as the Supreme Court is set to hear a landmark case on President Donald Trump's tariffs.
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday on whether Trump exceeded his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose sweeping obligations on U.S. trading partners.
At stake is the latitude that presidents have in using trade measures as an instrument of economic policy. Bessent expressed confidence in a CNBC “Squawk Box” interview that the government will prevail, but that it has additional outlets if the decision goes the other way.
“There are many other authorities that could be used, but IEEPA is by far the cleanest and gives the US and the president the most negotiating authority,” he said. “The others are more cumbersome, but they can be effective,”
Specifically, Bessent located Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which provides a national security justification, as well as Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which regulates unfair trade practices.
However, they would limit the president's ability to use tariffs, as Trump has done, on “emergency” grounds.
“This is very important tomorrow and SCOTUS is going to hear this,” Bessent said, referring to the court's nickname. “This is a signature policy for the president, and traditionally SCOTUS has been loathe to interfere with this signature policy.”
Outside of the lawsuit, the secretary spoke about the White House's relationship with China following last week's meeting between Trump and Xi Jinping. An agreement reached during the meeting in South Korea resulted in deals that brought back some of the most burdensome tariffs the two sides had imposed on each other.
“It was a very good meeting. Both parties approached it with a lot of respect,” Bessent said. “I think President Trump is the only leader that President Xi respects. … The relationship is in a good place.”
Bessent said two state visits are planned for 2026, one in Beijing and one in the US.
