Consumers dodge trillions in price hikes; Trump turns apoplectic after some court rules he can’t tax and spend as if congress didn’t exist.

Photo above – actor Mark Ruffalo impersonates Donald Trump in the new film “Mickey 17”, streaming on HBO Max . . .

Told’ja so. A few months ago I published a column expressing doubt that any part of the constitution allows a US president to arbitrarily raise taxes, spend money, or declare war. Yesterday the court agreed. (see link below).

But it’s hardly a real court. It’s the US Court of International Trade. Despite it’s obscurity. the USCIT does already have dozens of cases pending. Typically, some Chinese, Japanese, or South Korean corporation whining about a quota or tariff nobody ever heard of. Most of those disputes involve actual laws created by congress. The trade court has apparently never tried to take down a president before. We’ll see how this plays out. This case is probably going to run the gamut of superior courts, appellate courts, appeals courts, etc. before the US Supreme Court even decides if it will hear the case at all. That might take years.

The US Stock Market is soaring, of course. Presumably trillions of dollars in retaliatory taxes by every nation from Australia to Zimbabwe will also be suspended by their prime ministers, presidents, premiers, kings, and shahs. Ka-ching!

On the face of it, this looks like a victory for big business, and a defeat for Trump. And let’s not forget . . . you and I will save big bucks on foreign cars (even if they were made almost completely in the USA). Schlock from Amazon will still be delivered 24/7 at prices too good to resist. Why is your Amazon shopping Amazon cart empty? Check out this week's deals.

My theory isn’t that Trump isn’t really having conniptions over this court decision. His daily rants to raise and lower tariffs against foes and friends alike spiraled out of control and had become a farce. This was a kabuki play for the MAGA faithful. Those who are convinced that Trump and tariffs will lead us to back to the golden age of 1950’s American smokestack industries and stay at home moms. The president is probably relieved that he doesn’t have to keep this tariff frenzy up, and can pivot to tackle other issues which aggravate his base.

Before we close the curtain on this tariff drama however, let’s recall that we weren’t exactly in a safe space before Trump was inaugurated. Congress conspired with several previous presidents to burden us with a $37 trillion national debt, a tsunami of job seekers without visas, unaffordable housing, a fentanyl crisis, foreign hacking of our banks, electric grid, and government offices . . .

So today it’s almost as if the election never took place. Are you really happy about where we’re at?

I’m just sayin’ . . .

Trump’s Trade Strategy Upended After Court Blocks Global Tariffs