Trumpian tariffs: the Supreme Court gets involved, Customs untangles

Snatched up on the Scottish greens, the Turnberry Agreement, concluded on July 27 between Donald Trump and Ursula von der Leyen, has taken the European Union out of the tariff rough by capping unilateral tariffs on most imports across the Atlantic at 15%. In this commercial assault where the New World challenges the Old, the Old Continent is faring better than most of its neighbors. Raised to their highest level in almost a century, these taxes break with the policy of free trade and return to the protectionism of the 1930s that fuelled the Great Depression. The die has been cast, but are they loaded ? The Supreme Court will soon decide, probably by the end of the year. A crucial question is whether Trump can, on his own initiative, build this customs wall : "Yes, he can ?" one of his predecessors would ask. Not sure. At first instance, then at the end of August on appeal, the judges answered in the negative : the executive branch is overstepping its role and encroaching on that of Congress, and abuse of power has been retained. À lire aussi Contemporary art galleries:…