Voided, Unvoided

Check any importers in your life for signs of whiplash: most of President Trump’s tariffs were voided Wednesday and reinstated yesterday… at least temporarily.

The Constitution gives Congress the power to set tariffs, but a 1977 law delegates that authority to the president in times of crisis. On Wednesday, a three-judge panel in the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that Trump overstepped that 1977 law’s limits when he imposed tariffs of 10% (or higher) on nearly every country and gave the White House ten days to power down the tariff-collecting machines. 

Yesterday, a federal appeals court quickly granted the Trump administration’s request that the tariffs remain in place while legal battles unfold.

Not all of Trump’s tariffs are caught in the chaos, as some—including tariffs on steel, aluminum, and cars—were issued under separate legal authorities.

ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE
Our goal is to keep the big things big and the small things small. It’s not that global trade and changes to tariffs aren’t important; they’re just not God-of-the-Universe important. Stay focused on eternity, it changes everything.

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” 
Colossians 3:2-4 (CSB) (read full passage)