Chief Justice Roberts Calls Trump's Tariffs 'Taxes on Americans' While Grilling Admin Lawyer

Source: MEDIAite

Nov 5th, 2025, 11:33 am


Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts grilled Trump Solicitor General D. John Sauer on Wednesday over the administration’s claim that tariffs are not taxes. Sauer is arguing against lower court rulings that shot down President Donald Trump’s use of emergency powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to levy sweeping tariffs on foreign countries – a power solely granted to Congress in the Constitution.

Roberts questioned Sauer and noted Congress’s “core power” of regulating taxes, clearly rejecting his argument that Trump’s tariffs aren’t taxes.

“But I mean, and I think this is a question for the other side as well: it’s two-facing. Yes, of course, there are dealings with foreign powers, but the vehicle is imposition of taxes on Americans, and that has always been the core power of Congress. So to have the president’s foreign affairs power trump that basic power for Congress—it seems to me to at least neutralize between the two powers, the executive power and the legislative power,” Roberts said to Sauer, who replied:

Let me say two things in response to that. First, the notion that the taxes are all borne by Americans and not by foreign producers whose goods are imported—empirically, there’s no basis for that in the record. It’s actually a mix.

“But, who pays the tariffs? If a tariff is imposed on automobiles, who pays them?” Roberts interjected.



Read more: https://www.mediaite.com/politics/chief-justice-roberts-calls-trumps-tariffs-taxes-on-americans-while-grilling-admin-laywer/

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I noticed that Roberts' thing seems to be "financial" stuff. I.e., he did the majority opinion on the ACA and upheld the mandate of Congress' "power to tax".