Supreme Court & Executive Power

Days after the Supreme Court handed a 6–3 ruling authored by Chief Justice John Roberts that the 1977 emergency‑powers law (IEEPA) does not authorize President Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal” global tariffs — a full‑merits rebuke with Justices Thomas, Alito and Kavanaugh dissenting — the Court’s presence at Trump’s Feb. 24, 2026 State of the Union was notably thin. Only four justices (Roberts, Kagan, Kavanaugh and Barrett) attended while five (Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch, Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson) did not, as Trump denounced the decision and moved to impose new tariffs under other trade statutes (pushing a global rate toward 15%) amid ongoing refund claims and economic uncertainty.