Peter Baker on Trump’s Tariff Loss: This Is About Power, His Ability to Use That Tariff Power as He Chooses

RUSH EXCERPT:
BAKER: "Well, look, no case is probably more important to the president than this tariff case because in fact, it goes to the heart of his economic policy. It goes to the heart of his sense of his own power. Right. This is about how much power he has, more than it is even about what rate the tariffs might or might not be, and which countries might or might not be applied to, which products might be applied to. It’s about his ability to use that tariff power as he chooses. He loves the tariff power because it is almost in his mind anyway, kind of a kingly power. He’s mad at you about something you said. He’s mad at you about a video you posted. Boom! You have a 10% tariff. Boom. You have a 20% tariff. He has used this as an instrument of power throughout this second term, one that hasn’t, of course, required, under his view, Congress to have any role in it. Now, the Supreme Court is saying, yes, actually, Congress does have a role in it under the statute said that he was using it. Doesn’t say that he can use tariffs. It doesn’t say anything about tariffs or taxes, which is what we’re talking about. This is the power of taxation. Constitution specifically says the power of taxation belongs to Congress, not the president. The Congress can give him the power to tax, but that statute he used didn’t do it. So in his mind, anti-American means anti-Trump. Anything that he perceives to be stopping him or an obstacle to him gets equated with anti-American. It’s quite extraordinary way of looking at things. But that’s, I think, one of the lessons of that tweet this morning or that social post this morning, was he interprets anything against him as being against the country."