Oregon AG sues Trump administration over global trade war

PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon Attorney General Day Rayfield is leading a multi-state lawsuit against the Trump administration over the president’s global trade war. 

The lawsuit argues that the president has no authority to “arbitrarily impose tariffs” as he has done in the last three months, including his April 2 announcement that imposed sweeping new tariffs on much of the world, causing global market chaos. 

President Trump’s import taxes, which he calls “reciprocal tariffs,” impose a baseline 10% tariff on all countries and higher tariffs on countries the White House claims have the largest trade deficits with the U.S. To do this, the president invoked powers under the once-obscure International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The 12-state lawsuit filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade challenges the White House’s interpretation and use of the IEEPA, stating that the president cannot impose these tariffs under the law nor does it allow worldwide tariffs to be imposed using it, as they were not in response to an actual “emergency.”

This is a developing story and will be updated with more details as they emerge.