Speaking to the Economic Club of Dallas, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent outlines what technical procedures the Trump administration will trigger now to retain tariff authority. As anticipated Bessent outlines section 232 tariffs, section 301 tariffs, and Section 122 tariffs. WATCH (prompted):
Section 232 [Steel and Aluminum examples] of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (19 U.S.C. §1862, as amended) authorizes the President to impose trade restrictions—such as a tariff or quota—if the Secretary of Commerce determines, following an investigation, that imports of a good “threaten to impair” U.S. national security. {SOURCE}
Section 301 tariffs are a trade enforcement mechanism established under the Trade Act of 1974. They allow the U.S. government to impose tariffs on imports from countries that are found to be engaging in unfair trade practices. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) conducts investigations to determine if a country is violating trade agreements, and if so, it can impose tariffs as a corrective measure {SOURCE}
Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 allows the U.S. president to impose tariffs of up to 15% to address “large and serious” balance-of-payments deficits. This authority can be exercised without prior congressional approval for a limited duration of 150 days. After this period, any tariffs must be extended by Congress. {SOURCE}
So Section 122 is a problem…….. Getting THIS Congress to extend anything under this section is a Heavy Lift, to say the least.
Agreed. Having this power with congress is wasted. Most are paid by China or Big Pharma😔
Except free stuff for illegal immigrants.
So the answer is…..the Trump administration imposes section 122 tariffs for 149 days, removes the tariff for 1 or 2 days and then reimposes a new tariff for another 149 days thus avoiding any requirement by congress to extend a
tariff after 150 days.
No, they can impose Section 122 for 150 days. That should be sufficient time for the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to conduct investigations to determine that a country is violating trade agreements, enabling him to seamlessly re-impose those same tariffs using Section 301.
Those 301 tariffs can stay in place until Congress makes them law or the unfair trade situation gets resolved.
It was obvious to those who were paying attention that this was going to be the result. It wasn’t just the lack of explicit authorization in the IEEPA for what President Trump was attempting to do with it, but also the application of the Major Questions Doctrine and the Constitutional allocation of powers (Article 1). Also, there was the issue of a lack of precedent. That’s okay, let’s keep going.
Exactly! Several people here counseled against this obviously illegal tariff agenda last year and were ostracized for it. If the Supreme Court approved it there was nothing to stop a Democrat President in 2028 from declaring a national climate emergency and imposing a 100% tariff on any nation that didn’t ban oil and gasoline!
Focus on lowering oil and gas prices, lowering inflation and getting interest rates down to 2% instead of starting trade wars. We need to win the midterms and get the economy back on track while lowering the deficit. The higher rates on T-bills are killing the budget deficit and the extra tariff money is being squandered anyway!
President Trump has yet to sign rescission bills for $220 Billion in DOGE-indentified waste, fraud, and abuse (22% of goal).
Our deficit is going to eat us alive, and now Elon says robots will solve our deficit / debt? Huh?
Exactly! All of the tariff $$$ collected by the Treasury was spent faster than the checks cleared and the budget deficit bigger than ever. The tariff $$$ meant nothing!
That’s not true. President Trump cut the trade deficit in half which both reversed U.S. GDP from a negative number to a healthy positive one and decreased the federal budget deficit about $41 billion from last year (in a year with an inflation rate of about 2.7%). I support him on trade.
That said, your point the U.S. federal budget deficit was about $1.8 trillion in 2025 is noted.
Now given that there is no real danger of recession in the present environment; if President Trump could have kept going and lowered the trade deficit to zero (or even reversed it): U.S. economic activity would have literally surged driving up tax revenues which would have begun to down federal and state budget deficits in a truly material way (assuming the federal and state legislatures didn’t simply increase spending in kind).
President Trump and Peter Navarro are making the right moves on trade and I support them with that. It’s just this particular method of doing it wasn’t going to pass through SCOTUS.
The real problem here is the non-classical liberal Democrats, Neo-conservative Republicans, and libertarians in Congress who are in the way of eliminating the trade deficit and surging the U.S. economy for U.S. workers.
It’s a different paradigm than the one these three factions of politician have pursued since 1993 to increase campaign funding by helping corporatists and wealthy investors accelerate their wealth in a non-symbiotic manner by offshoring U.S. jobs to foreign lands, outsourcing U.S. work to foreign firms, and importing a sea of foreign-born labor onto U.S. soil all of which harms U.S. citizens trying to work in this U.S. domestic labor market that is their home and hurts the U.S. national interest (e.g. high “functional unemployment;” high non-entitlement social service costs; increasing income inequality; escalating government debt; lower real-wages; etc.).
Typo. I meant that President Trump decreased the trade deficit not halved it. I believe it was only a 0.2% decrease from 2024 to 2025. Typing in multiple posts on different forums at the same time can lead to such mistakes. Anyways, benefits such as $287 billion tariff and fee revenue into the U.S. Treasury and positive GDP growth from a 0.2% decrease in the trade deficit should make everyone take note. Imagine halving the trade deficit! 🙂
The tariff is obviously illegal? That’s just silly.
In my industry I’ve seen lots of positive impacts of the tariffs. My own company and customers are currently making changes to move the manufacture of more of the components and sub-assemblies of our systems/products to here in the USA.
Manufacturing creates wealth. A service economy just shifts wealth around.
You get other countries to stop tariffing our goods and then get back to me.
Not just the Supreme Court but two federal district courts and the US Court of International Trade (US Customs Court) all ruled that the IEEPA Tariffs were illegal after full trials!
The tariffs are not “illegal”, the method used to apply the tariffs did not follow the procedure spelled out in the IEEPA.
Are we supposed to just allow other countries to engage in wildly unfair and illegal trade practices that destroy our nation’s industries?
This chap is superb, articulate in such a concise way. The Trump team clearly had plan A, B, C et all.
it’s almost as if they knew this was going to happen, and they just had to show the people that Congress and Scotus are against the American people themselves.
Not once was anything taken up against Joe Biden, bringing people in illegally under the cover of night and dispersing them across the country against our immigration laws.
Yet here we are with this; the idiots need to wake up.
I think so also. But, no matter which side of the coin comes up PDJT can survive it and play it to his advantage. In this scenario, he got to totally expose the court and their foreign influence. His TS post laid all of them out in lavender. Since he’d never really done this before with SCOTUS, the impact is scathing. Confidence is the last aspect of any branch of the government is now totally gone. I hope someone posts J. Kavenaugh’s dissenting opinion. PDJT said he slammed them.
Of course he always had Plan B and standby PLan C. It is a beautiful thing.
Thank you for posting this Sundance. Secretary Bessent brought my temperature down immensely as to what the Supreme Court ruling meant.
Have never heard a person make so much sense about the complexity of finance, investment, taxation, etc. God Bless Secretary Bessent!
” If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.”
Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Let’s hear it for Trump Wars!
It appears the administration was on top of this:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/02/25/2025-03047/request-for-comments-to-assist-in-reviewing-and-identifying-unfair-trade-practices-and-initiating
Aluminum and Steel: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/06/09/2025-10524/adjusting-imports-of-aluminum-and-steel-into-the-united-states
Yep 5D chess. Enemies revealed themselves.
Probably had everything ready for weeks, with only the date to be filled in.
Since last February
Oh no Supreme Court please don’t say I can’t impose tariffs under the narrow interpretation of IEEPA authority!!
President Trump is nobody’s fool, he knew when they took the case in the SC a 50/50 chance he/we would lose. So, like a good business man he has a work around in place.
Follow the President’s lead, he’s neither surprised, nor worried, because he expected it.
MAGA!
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<#>
I disagree, Linda…
But we can probably hash it out 🙂
2D checkers-players (librul members of the USSC) meet 3D chess-masters (the PDJT administration).
Aluminum, steel and auto tariffs were already applied by President Trump and with the addition of semiconductors probably all that really matter for jobs. The other tariffs weren’t going to bring back jobs and whatever revenue the tariffs generated we paid ten times the cost in additional interest on the federal debt at 4.5% versus 1%.
Maybe, now Powell and the Federal Reserve will finally be forced to lower interest rates after all?
Americans will be better off with 2% mortgages and car loans instead of Star Wars and new battleships. We need to focus on the economy and the midterms not Iran.
Dear chatGPT, “why should the issue of the extremist Islamic Iranian theocracy, a state sponsor of terror with a stated objective of subjugating the entire world to Twelve Branch Shia Islam through force when deception does not work while publicly screaming ‘Death to America!’ since February 11, 1979, having nuclear tipped ballistic missiles be important to Americans?”
Yes, the Mad Mullahs are a bigger enemy and threat than what we have been conditioned to believe, and just because we have ICBM’s, doesn’t mean that Iran’s IRGC will not try other means to damage us, banking on future leaders being to craven to use them…
Iran is not my enemy and it’s simply silly to worry about whatever crap they “chant!”
Wow! The mullahs of Iran are the instigators and funders of ALL the middle east terrorism. They have killed and maimed US soldiers, they want certain segments of the world to be wiped off the map…. they have murdered 40k of their own people for daring to rise up against their rule.
With the mullahs ousted, there will be PEACE and prosperity.
It may not be your enemy but it certainly is our enemy. By your logic we have nothing to fear from North Korea either do we? If a person or any entity spends enormous energy for years and years about how they are going to kill you the first chance they get, you better take heed.
Sorry but I don’t suffer fools very well.
The Defiants will be built if for no other reason that the Ticonderoga cruisers are all going to be retired by 2027.
The fleet needs larger capital ships that are not destroyers or carriers to fill in the gaps of capabilities. New frigates will not be enough either.
We can do both and much more.
It doesn’t appear so now. Does it?
Rebuilding our steel industry, from the iron ore mines to the blast furnaces and rolling mills, would put a LOT of people to work.
Building or expanding our ship building capacity to that of Korea would put a lot more folks to work. Defense work, like building munitions from 5.56mm ammunition to 155mm shells would put a lot to work. Rebuilding industrial and defense infrastructure would be a top priority in my ideal world.
God bless
“Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent just STUNNED the “Experts,” he and Trump have been making big plans and it’s FULL-STEAM AHEAD
Tariff revenue will be *unchanged* in 2026. Boom.”…..
“Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent just STUNNED the “Experts,”
Bessent has provided evidence to the street definition of the word “expert”:
An “ex” is a has-been, and a “spert” is a quick dribble…………….
Expert: Someone who knows more and more about less and less.
This is highly encouraging. Thank you for sharing.
Was he serious?
Wooo!!
Many of us already know this answer.
Aye, but will they report it?
Just thinking a little. Hearing a lot of noise about now having to refund tariffs collected so far. What would be fun is to require any company that paid tariffs and gets a refund must pass through that refund to every person who bought an item who bought one of their items or used their products since the economists say they were passed on. I bet all of a sudden we will discover that any costs actually passed on were either minimal or non-existent as SD has explained. I hope someone asks all those Senators (Paul, Massie) and Reps (all Dems) why they shouldn’t do this.
Massie is a House member.
Since the court is playing word games within the IEEPA … why not add “Licenses” to the tool box since those specifically listed in the IEEPA.
Licenses would hit the Puppet Masters and their Foreign Partners square in the pocket book on any fronts. Plus, have the impact of applying LEGAL pressure to bring money and capabilities back ON-SHORE.
I think the ruling stipulated, ridiculously, that any license could not have a fee! Ridiculous.
“We have the ability to peel back the curtain”.
“Even on a private equity?”
“Oh, sure.”
Yup. I can’t speak to trust or motive, but Bessent speaks easily and confidently, and seems to know what he’s talking about. +1
Sundance, don’t these SC “Just Usses” talk to each other before they come to a decision? Kavanaugh clearly laid out numerous alternatives for the Trump administration to achieve the tariff goals.
Seems like they would have been more sensible with this decision… or are they simply attempting to flout their “authority?”
What American citizen DOESN’T want economic security in our nation? The WHY is fairly apparent, the WHO is being and has been revealed for the last twenty years or so, as the “wheat and tares” are being separated.
Oh yes, they talk to each other and circulate drafts. The other justices all knew exactly what his dissent would say.
Very surreal. Seems like so many people are walking around with those headsets on, living in their artificial worlds. Gotta be tough to crash into the reality of a light pole once in a while. I dare say, there’s probably A LOT MORE crashes coming for these lefty loonies.
MAGA Double Down.
Looks like Section #122 is coming.
What do you all think?
Johnny “Cartel” Roberts: “1 + 1 = 3.”
That’s how he counts elections, too.
One tool not talked about is Delta force. They could snatch the traitor justices out of their beds and have them in Gitmo before America wakes up.
i like this !!
It’s called rendition. ‘Always been a big fan….
The new Queen of Japan is ahead of the game. She and King Don cut a deal and the left wing bed wettings continue.
As we speak, some left wing robe is already prepared to slap an injunction.
So, Section 122 needs CONgress approval after 150 days to extend. That’s 6 months, mid August. IF maybe (notice big if……since dealing with GOPrick RINOrats) CONgress house can pass and give to Senate. Senate Dims call filibuster. Perfect set up for good campaign ads against them. Of course this does require Senate Republicans to be on Americas side which is greatly questionable. But Trump could make good ads.
Ads pushing how dim Senate are against America.
is that a total of 150 days. or could he impose the sec 122 tariffs on march 1st and then just before the 150 days are up around end of july he remove the tariffs.then month down the road reinstate them and get another 150 days??
This was so apparent that the Administration was prepared for this ruling either way. Change nothing if it goes your way or be ready with steps B, C, & D if it doesn’t. Nothing to prepare for or strategize about if goes your way so nothing to spend time on, the Administration has spent the last several months preparing to hit the ground running if the ruling went the other direction.
The press conference was a required step in that strategy in order to signal to International Leaders that nothing is realistically going to change. it’s was also needed to provide SCOTUS some cover for future rulings to illustrate that they are “not in the tank for PDJT”. While this was a significant ruling, it wasn’t a “blow” to the Administration’ posture or function, as media outlets would have everyone believe. There are far more significant rulings that are set to come out & I don’t think it was a coincidence that SCOTUS elected to release this ruling first. “Birthright Citizenship” is still yet to be released. Let’s see how this one goes?
🏛️ The Mastermind Trap: Did Trump Just Checkmate the Deep State?
GL Hendricks
Feb 20, 2026
“In a turn of events that has sent shock waves through Washington today, February 20, 2026, a new theory is emerging that President Trump’s recent “defeat” at the Supreme Court was actually a carefully orchestrated trap. While the Court’s 6-3 ruling struck down his use of the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to collect nearly $1 trillion in global tariffs, supporters argue this wasn’t a loss—it was the moment the “Deep State’s” grip on the judiciary was finally exposed. By forcing the Court to rule on such high-stakes economic policy, the theory suggests Trump compelled “foreign interest puppets” within the system to reveal their true allegiances.
The President wasted no time in fueling this narrative, taking to Truth Social to blast the majority justices as “fools and lapdogs” who have been “swayed by foreign interests”. Trump’s blistering critique specifically targeted his own appointees who joined the majority, alleging they lacked the “courage” to prioritize American sovereignty over globalist influence. This public rebuke has transformed the legal ruling into a powerful political weapon, providing what many see as “proof” that foreign powers are actively pulling strings to sabotage America’s economic comeback…”
https://diamondz.substack.com/p/the-mastermind-trap-did-trump-just
The Court just messed it’s pants with this one. I’d pull a Jackson on them and see if they can enforce their edict.
all of these statutory options are the attorneys’ wet dream – litigation forever and ever – AMEN
150 days from now is the middle of midterm election campaigns. Not sure how many will vote against protecting American workers.
Scott Bessent is a funny guy. Every time I see him or hear him I want to laugh. He seems like a really good guy but I don’t know why he tickles my funny bone.
I suspect that Justice Kavanagh purposefully outlined the alternative routes that the administration can take in order to keep the tariffs in place.
Tariffs at least provided the hammer to negotiate trade deals. The court closed the front door but left open the back windows. The monies collected should be given to the American people and not back to corporations. F’em
Can we assume that the team has been conducting these investigations since Day 1 and are ready to show the world the evidence? That would be great to already have in their front pocket