❓WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump warned U.S. courts against blocking his tariff policy, citing its positive economic impact and potential consequences of a judicial reversal.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Donald Trump, U.S. courts, former House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Alan Wolff of the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
📍WHEN & WHERE: August 8, 2025, on Truth Social.
💬KEY QUOTE: “If a Radical Left Court ruled against us at this late date… it would be 1929 all over again, a GREAT DEPRESSION.” – Donald Trump
🎯IMPACT: Markets have responded relatively positively to tariff policy shifts, with much of the impact now priced in to long-term projections. An abrupt change initiated by the federal courts could spark a return of market volatility.
President Donald J. Trump took to Truth Social on Friday to warn of the economic risks of potential judicial actions against his tariff policy. He declared that a court ruling against his administration could lead to a severe economic downturn, likening it to the Great Depression of 1929.
“Tariffs are having a huge positive impact on the Stock Market. Almost every day, new records are set. In addition, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars are pouring into our Country’s coffers. If a Radical Left Court ruled against us at this late date, in an attempt to bring down or disturb the largest amount of money, wealth creation and influence the U.S.A. has ever seen, it would be impossible to ever recover, or pay back, these massive sums of money and honor. It would be 1929 all over again, a GREAT DEPRESSION!” Trump wrote.
The America First leader continued: “If they were going to rule against the wealth, strength, and power of America, they should have done so LONG AGO, at the beginning of the case, where our entire Country, while never having a chance at this kind of GREATNESS again, would not have been put in 1929 style jeopardy.”
“Our Country deserves SUCCESS AND GREATNESS, NOT TURMOIL, FAILURE, AND DISGRACE,” Trump added.
The comments come as a federal appeals court deliberates on the legality of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA). Specifically, President Trump’s global reciprocal tariffs are under review by the full 11-judge bench of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C.
The court will determine whether Trump exceeded his authority by imposing reciprocal tariffs on various U.S. trading partners. The appeal follows a May ruling by a three-judge panel of the Court of International Trade, which blocked the tariffs. That decision has been stayed pending the outcome of this new hearing.
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