Mitra Weighs In on the US Supreme Court's Tariff Ruling in Hindustan Times Article

** Mitra Weighs In on the US Supreme Court’s Tariff Ruling in Hindustan Times Article **

March 5, 2026

Hindustan Times

“ Fate of US trade deal post tariff takedown,” co-authored by Devashish Mitra, Gerald B. and Daphna Cramer Professor of Global Affairs, was published in Hindustan Times. Following is an excerpt:

The biggest impact of the SCOTUS ruling, though, may be on the political fallout that it could unleash. Two things that have marked Donald Trump throughout his political career (as well as his public pronouncements before running for public office) are his unquenchable desire to be perceived as a “winner” and his affection for tariffs as a policy instrument. The ruling hits both simultaneously.

While normal political actors would react to such a setback by quietly using other avenues to reimpose their policy vision, Trump’s persona makes it unlikely that he will go this route. The State of the Union address suggests that he will stay on this path. His desire for revenge and quick victories opens up the possibility that his words or actions in the coming days could create a backlash both from the courts as well as the non-MAGA wing of conservative America, many of whom have already soured on his two major policy initiatives: Immigration enforcement and tariffs.

The possibility of having to refund the tariffs also raises an additional political unpleasantness for Trump. A big part of his pitch for tariffs to the American public was based on the assertion that the tariffs would be paid by foreigners. Having to refund tariffs to domestic businesses would give the lie to these claims. That too is loaded with consequences given the upcoming midterm elections in November.

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