California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that his state will file a lawsuit challenging U.S. President Donald Trump’s authority to impose sweeping tariffs that have set off a global trade war.
The suit will argue that Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, or a 10 per cent tariff on all imports, is unlawful. The act enables a president to freeze and block transactions in response to foreign threats.
Trump has offered many justifications for increasing tariffs, including that they are designed to spur U.S. manufacturing and stop the flow of illicit fentanyl into the country.
California’s move follows rapidly changing tariff plans by the Trump administration. It is the first state to take legal action over the tariffs, which have been previously legally challenged in suits filed by law firms representing business owners and civil liberties organizations.
Newsom says the tariffs in effect have resulted in inflated costs and billions of dollars in damage in California, which has the largest economy among U.S. states and is a massive exporter.
“President Trump’s unlawful tariffs are wreaking chaos on California families, businesses and our economy — driving up prices and threatening jobs,” he said in a statement. “We’re standing up for American families who can’t afford to let the chaos continue.”
As with Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill, California is arguing that congressional approval was required for the tariffs. Senate Democrats were joined by four Republicans in a symbolic vote rebuking Trump over the tariffs earlier this month, but Trump loyalists lead the House of Representatives, making a similar vote there unlikely.
Trade with Canada impacted
The state will ask the court to immediately block the tariffs in the lawsuit being filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California,
Answering a question from CBC News, the White House press secretary said U.S. President Donald Trump still thinks Canada should become the 51st state, but there may be ‘flexibility’ when it comes to tariffs on Canada’s auto sector.
The announcement on Wednesday comes days after Newsom asked countries to exempt the state’s exports from retaliatory tariffs and measures, stating, “California is not Washington, D.C.” No deals have yet been announced..
California, which boasts its economy in terms of gross domestic product is only smaller than a handful of countries, borders Mexico and also enjoys a significant trade relationship with Canada. Trump has expressed grievances about the updated trilateral trade agreement he signed off on in 2019 with Mexico and Canada.
The Consulate General of Canada estimates that there is $53 billion US of two-way trade annually between Canada and California, and that there are nearly 2,000…
Read More: California the 1st state to sue Trump administration over tariffs
