Will Appeals Courts Affirm that Trump Is Abusing His Emergency Power by Imposing Sweeping Tariffs? A Conversation with Ilya Somin

When President Trump launched his so-called Liberation Day tariffs, he didn’t just ignite a global trade war—he may have also triggered yet another constitutional crisis. This week, first an international trade court and then a federal court ruled those tariffs unlawful, striking at the heart of Trump’s sweeping claims of executive power under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. But almost immediately, an appeals court hit pause.

To help us unpack what these rapid developments mean—not just for trade policy, but for the separation of powers and the future of emergency authority in America—director of Executive Watch, Rob Tracinski, talked to George Mason University law professor, Ilya Somin. Somin is co-counsel in the case and the legal brains behind the lawsuit. They explore whether emergency powers have become a blank check for presidential overreach, and what this case could mean for rebalancing power between Congress and the White House.

© The UnPopulist, 2025

Follow us on Bluesky, Threads, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and X.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.theunpopulist.net