‘Rebalancing trade agreements’: White House defends Trump tariffs against ‘activist judges’ ruling

Taking a jibe at the judges behind the ruling, Leavitt said: “America cannot function if President Trump has his sensitive diplomatic and trade negotiations derailed by activist judges. This judicial overreach must be stopped.”

President Trump is rebalancing our trade agreements with the entire world, bringing in billions of dollars in tariff revenues, and finally ending our country from being ripped off.

But America cannot function if President Trump has his sensitive diplomatic and trade negotiations… pic.twitter.com/TMcnKEQz5J

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) May 29, 2025

“The President’s rationale in imposing these “powerful” tariffs was legally sound and grounded in common sense. President Trump believes that America cannot function safely long-term if we are unable to scale advance domestic manufacturing capacity,” she added.

Trump, the ‘negotiator in chief’

Responding to the ruling, Leavitt said the administration had already filed an emergency appeal and was prepared to take the case all the way to the Supreme Court. She also said “all countries around the world have faith in the negotiator in chief” — President Trump.

“We have already filed an emergency appeal, and we expect to fight this battle all the way to the Supreme Court. They (the judges) also probably see how ridiculous this ruling is, and they understand the administration is going to win. And we intend to win,” she said.

US court halts Trump’s tariffs

The US Court of International Trade on Wednesday curbed US President Donald Trump’s authority to impose global tariffs he announced last month. Ruling that Trump had “overstepped” his executive authority by invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the panel said the White House had acted “contrary to law.”

However, a US federal appeals court  on Thursday to a temporary pause in the decision pending an appeal hearing.

The ruling follows two separate lawsuits filed in May, in which local businesses argued that the tariffs had caused direct harm to their operations. In addition, a coalition of a dozen US states filed a lawsuit in the Court of International Trade, calling the policy “unlawful” and harmful to the American economy.

The states urged the court to declare the tariffs illegal and prevent federal agencies from enforcing them.