Democrats hailed the Supreme Court’s Friday ruling that struck down President Donald Trump's idiotic emergency tariffs, with many declaring it to be another "Liberation Day”—though this time for U.S. consumers who will no longer be hurt by Trump's inflationary trade policy.
“A victory for the wallets of every American consumer,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X. “Trump’s illegal tariff tax just collapsed—He tried to govern by decree and stuck families with the bill. Enough chaos. End the trade war.”
President Donald Trump announces his “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2, 2025.
In their statements, Democrats pointed out how Trump’s tariffs cost U.S. consumers dearly.
"Finally, SCOTUS reaffirms what we've known all along, Trump's tariffs are an unconstitutional tax on the American people," Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland wrote on X. "Over the last year, working people paid an average of $1,000 more because of these tariffs. And Trump has no plan to put that money back in your wallet."
But Democrats also said that the damage the tariffs did can't easily be erased by the ruling, adding that they will make sure that voters know the full destruction that GOP lawmakers enabled for nearly a year.
"Manufacturers closed their doors and let go of workers as their costs skyrocketed. Small businesses have shuttered, and those that survived will have a hard time claiming the money they are owed under this framework, while consumers who have paid more for everyday necessities will likely never receive a refund," Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia wrote on X.
He added in a statement, "These brutal losses could have been avoided if Congressional Republicans had the courage to stand up to Trump and end his trade war sooner. The American people will remember who fought for affordability and who called it a hoax."
Rep. Gwen Moore of Wisconsin also called out Republicans as “enablers of the biggest consumer tax hike in a generation.
“They abdicated Congress’ tariff powers and let Trump’s illegal tariffs hit American businesses and families,” she wrote on X.
Related | House votes to slap back Trump's tariffs on Canada in rare bipartisan rebuke
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which seeks to elect Democrats to the House, telegraphed that it will still use tariffs as a cudgel in the midterms.
“Trump’s chaotic and seemingly random tariffs have wreaked havoc across our nation’s industries—from farmers, manufacturers, to home construction. But most significantly, they have hurt America’s small businesses and made life less affordable for millions of hardworking families,” DCCC Communications Director Courtney Rice said in a statement.
Rice added, “Americans deserve a Congress that will put people before politics—which means no longer bending the knee to an out-of-touch President and rolling back these reckless tariffs—which will happen when Democrats re-take the House majority in November.”
Meanwhile, Republicans have mostly stayed silent since the ruling—likely because they’re trying to figure out what their next moves, especially since many of them were privately against tariffs but publicly supported Dear Leader anyway.
A cartoon by Clay Jones.
But at least one Republican said that the GOP-controlled Congress should codify Trump's import taxes—even though economists say that they’re bad for business and voters—who are overwhelmingly against them—wanted Congress to nix them.
"SCOTUS’s outrageous ruling handcuffs our fight against unfair trade that has devastated American workers for decades," GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio wrote on X. "These tariffs protected jobs, revived manufacturing, and forced cheaters like China to pay up. Now globalists win, factories investments may reverse, and American workers lose again. This betrayal must be reversed and Republicans must get to work immediately on a reconciliation bill to codify the tariffs that had made our country the hottest country on earth!"
Of course, Trump's tariffs did the exact opposite, contributing to his economic approval rating consistently sinking to new lows.
But if Moreno and fellow Republicans want to force their peers to go on record about Trump's economically destructive and immensely unpopular tariffs, then who are we to stand in their way?
