A majority of the public wants the Supreme Court to rule against President Trump in two major cases. But more than half think the justices are going out of their way to avoid siding with him.
US dollar hits 4-year low
The U.S. dollar has hit a four-year low on the back of tariff uncertainty and Fed interest rate cuts.
WASHINGTON – A majority of Americans want the Supreme Court to rule against President Donald Trump in two major pending cases, according to a new poll from Marquette Law School.
In a January survey, more than six in 10 adults said the high court should uphold lower court rulings that limit the president’s power to impose tariffs.
A similar proportion said the court should rule that Trump cannot fire members of the Federal Reserve Board.
But more than half said the justices were doing everything in their power to avoid ruling against the president.
The Supreme Court accepted President Trump’s appeal.
The court, with a 6-3 conservative majority, has overwhelmingly accepted Mr. Trump’s challenges to his actions as president, often allowing controversial policies to advance during litigation.
Some challenges are now making their way through lower courts, where justices are being asked to decide the ultimate fate of Trump’s policies.
During oral arguments in November on President Trump’s blanket tariffs, many of the justices seemed skeptical that the president could use the emergency powers provided in the 1977 law to avoid the more complex and restrictive tariff procedures that other presidents have relied on.
But the court has not yet issued a ruling, leading to speculation that the justices are in no hurry to strike down Trump’s economic centerpiece and major foreign policy tool.
However, it is not uncommon for courts to take months to issue major decisions. And of the eight other cases heard in November, the court decided on only one, none of which are as serious as the tariff dispute.
The Marquette Law School poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points, with 56% saying tariffs would hurt the economy and 30% saying tariffs would help the economy.
Poll finds most want an independent Federal Reserve Board
Additionally, 76% said the Federal Reserve should be independent from political control.
President Trump’s attempt to fire Lisa Cook from the Fed was mooted in January.
The justices say it is likely that Mr. Cook will remain at the central bank, at least while he fights Mr. Trump’s claims. The court could also rule outright that President Trump did not have sufficient cause to fire her, which would resolve the dispute once and for all.
Even if that happens, Mr. Trump could emerge victorious in another pending decision regarding his ability to control independent agencies.
In the December case, a majority of the justices is likely to agree that the president can remove at will the heads of the Federal Trade Commission and many other agencies with staggered terms, led by politically balanced panels of experts set up by Congress.
But the court has indicated that the Fed takes a different view, and Cook’s case is likely to yield a different outcome.
