Loading summary
Unknown Sponsor
This episode is brought to you by Lifelock. Not everyone is careful with your personal information, which might explain why there's a victim of identity theft every five seconds in the U.S. fortunately, there's LifeLock. LifeLock monitors hundreds of millions of data points a second for threats to your identity. If your identity is stolen, a US based restoration specialist will fix it, guaranteed or your money back. Save up to 40% your first year by visiting lifelock.com podcast terms apply.
Letitia James
Want to sharpen your aim, save money on ammo and train like the pros, all from the comfort of your home. Meet Mantis X, the cutting edge dry fire training system used by the Marine Corps, army and Special forces to build precision and confidence. 94% of shooters report improved accuracy in just 20 minutes and you could be next. With Mantis X, you train with your own firearm anytime, anywhere without wasting a single round in less than two weeks. The system pays for itself and ammo savings alone. As a proud gun owner, I believe in the second Amendment. But rights come with responsibility. That means refining your accuracy, mastering your skills and staying prepared every time you train. Whether you're a new shooter or an experienced marksman, Mantis X helps you train smarter, shoot better and defend what matters most. Get yours today@mantisx.com that's mantisx.com Letitia James.
Michael Popak
Is a winner, Donald Trump a loser. The tariffs are blocked. And that from a court that Donald Trump hand picked to take the dispute to when states challenged and small businesses challenged his power, which he doesn't have, back on Liberation Day to set new tariffs against the world. Not so says the Court of International Trade. Yes, that's a real court. In New York, three judge panel which was evenly divided between Obama, Reagan and Trump appointees all ruled unanimously that Trump does not have those powers. And now Donald Trump has taken an appeal. And where does that appeal go, you may ask? It goes to the Federal Circuit, a little known appellate court that sits in Washington D.C. comprised of 11 judges. And then if he loses the appeal, he'll try to take it up to the United States Supreme Court. And if he loses that, then he's gonna have to start giving out orders to the Customs, United States Customs Department to issue orders to take down those tariffs. I'm gonna go over it with you right now. Huge setback for Donald Trump, especially since he dragged the case into this particular court. I'm Michael Popak, let's put on my Wall street hat, give you the breakdown here on the Midas Touch Network, including the new information that there's already been an appeal that's been filed and we'll see what happens next. What happened? Late last night, we got a ruling from this unique specialized court that sits in New York. It is a specialty court. It is an Article 3 court, meaning the judges there are lifetime appointees and confirmed by the Senate and they are subject to and are creatures of Article 3 of the US Constitution. And they meet in panels, unlike a trial court, a federal court at the district court level. They meet in three judge panels like appellate courts, but they're really a court of first original jurisdiction, meaning that they hear the case, they just hear it together as a trio. And they issued their decision yesterday. And what they ruled is that Donald Trump does not have the power under the Constitution to impose these types of tariffs. And he certainly doesn't have it under a body of law from 1977 coming out of the stagflation Jimmy Carter era, the International Emergency Economic Powers act, which we call iaapa, he doesn't have that either because we're not under that kind of emergency. It's usually a war like event that allows a president to have been delegated the power that resides with Congress to impose tariffs. See, every little school child knows that it's Congress, not the president, that has the sole power to impose tariffs. They can delegate that power with clear direction to other branches, including the presidency. And they've done that in various ways starting in 1917. But they can't give unfettered, unlimited power for Donald Trump to come in, in the Rose Garden and, and announced with that big stupid sign of all the tariffs, with a crazy tariff program that had made no economic sense whatsoever. And the world responded, they can't do that. And you know, I give it up to the, to the Liberty justice center, the relatively new and small group. They brought this case on behalf of small businesses that were being hit by these tariffs. I mean, there's a lot of reporting going on right now about how companies are out there basically saying we can avoid the tariffs for you. We'll ship things through Vietnam. You won't have to pay the 30% China tariff, you'll pay the 10% Vietnam tariff. It's a whole shell game going on right now. In order to avoid the tariffs, many of the tariffs have been suspended. While Donald Trump tries to figure out how not direct the world economy and the US Economy to boot. You know, every time Donald Trump has a phone conversation or a meeting with Walmart or Home Depot or Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan Chase or he watches cable news, he changes his mind about his economic policy. That's how irrational and erratic he is. Is he a good steward for our economy? You be the judge.
Unknown Speaker
It was great seeing my mother in law from abroad over the holidays and have her visit with our baby daughter. But it also reminded me that she's getting older and that she doesn't have access to affordable hearing aids in our own country. Millions of adults every year over the age of 65 start to lose their hearing. If you or your parent are one of them, you are not alone. This podcast is sponsored by MDHearing. Maryland hearing makes high quality, easy to use rechargeable hearing aids with exceptional sound quality that are personalized to your hearing profile and cost a fraction of what typical Hearing AIDS cost. MDHearing's NEO model cost over 90% less than clinic hearing aids. The NEO fits inside your ear so no one will even know it's there. Plus MDHearing just launched the Neo XS, Maryland hearing's smallest hearing aid ever. MDHearing recently cut their price in half. That means you can get high quality rechargeable digital hearing AIDS for only $297 a pair. Since we gave my mother in law Maryland hearing aids on her last visit, her life is so much brighter and better and now she can actually hear my baby daughter's first cooing and almost words which are coming close to babushk. Mdhearing was founded by an ENT surgeon who saw how many of his patients needed hearing aids but couldn't afford them. He made it his mission to develop a quality hearing aid that anyone could afford. MDHearing has sold over 2 million hearing aids and they offer a 45 day risk free trial with 100% money back guarantee so you can buy with confidence. Still on the fence about MD Hearing, they were just selected to be the hearing aid supplier for top Medicare Advantage plans so they are a brand you can trust. Get the high quality affordable hearing aids you deserve with mDhearing. Go to shopmdhearing.com and use promo code legalaf to get a pair of hearing aids for just $297. Plus they're adding a free extra charging case $100 value just for listeners of legal af. That's shopmdhearing.com and Use our promo code legal af and pair of hearing aids for just $297.
Michael Popak
And now we've got judges at the US Court of International Trade. Why there? Because they have exclusive jurisdiction over all things related to tariffs. Period. When the case was originally filed, it was filed Before a regular federal judge. Donald Trump wanted to get to the Court of International Trade. Why? Because he knew the odds were a little bit better there. Maybe if he got a couple of Trumpers, maybe if he got a couple of Republicans, that he might be able to win. He liked his odds better. Right. He's a deal maker, he's a gambler. And he thought, oh, it's better there now, technically, it belongs there. So I agreed, I kind of agreed with the move. Now, I worried a little bit about three weeks ago when that same court refused to block, temporarily block the tariff program and denied the temporary restraining order, said, oh, that usually means they don't think that there's a winning case by the plaintiff. But now that they've seen the full filings, and this was on a motion for summary judgment, which is a judgment by a court, by the bench without the need for a trial, usually it means there are undisputed facts that no facts have to be developed by way of, of testimony or evidence. It's all been submitted. There's a stipulated set of facts or an agreed set of facts, or the facts that are not in dispute are sufficient to support a judgment in somebody's favor. If you have undisputed facts that as a matter of law, somebody is entitled to a judgment in their favor and that's called a summary judgment. They issued a summary judgment and they entered a permanent injunction. That's the block that's in all the headlines against the tariffs. Fundamentally, they reminded the world and Donald Trump that the President doesn't have that power, that the power to impose excise taxes and other taxes lies with the Congress. And again, there can be delegation, but it can't be unfettered. It can't be unlimited because that would be unconstitutional. And the law that Donald Trump relied on, that AIPA law, doesn't help him because we're not under that type of economic emergency and, or war or warlike footing to allow the President to take over and impose tariffs. Yeah. So there's now an appeal. That's, that's the focus here. Now you file an appeal with a notice of appeal. It's a one page document. They filed it. The notice of appeal says we're appealing the decision in its entirety. Then that there will be a three judge panel assigned at what we call the Federal Circuit in Washington. Not to be confused with the D.C. the D.C. court of Appeals. That's different. That's, that's a different appellate court that deals with things coming up from the regular federal trial court level. This is the Federal Circuit, which is a specialty appeals court that deals with things like patents, technology, commerce tariffs. And there's 11 judges. They sit three at a time. They'll issue their ruling. They'll set a briefing schedule. I don't think it'll be an emergency application. And Donald Trump did not skip that court and try to go to the Supreme Court directly, maybe because he's already kind of lowered the barriers and he sort of suspended a lot of these tariffs, although the world economy responded with a global yippee. And you've got stocks trading higher now because people think that the the tariffs are in jeopardy or Donald Trump's going to have to be forced to get rid of them. Of course, the rest of the world has already adopted a taco strategy, which has pissed off Donald Trump tacos, which has been coined by the Financial Times columnist Robert Armstrong back in a May 2 column, but just got to Donald Trump, which stands for Trump always chickens Out. Look, there's plenty of reporting that nations in negotiating with Donald Trump know he's going to fold and they incorporate that into their calculus in their negotiation strategy. That's been well known. That's why Mexico's been successful. That's why Canada's been successful. That's why China's been successful and why they're all eating our lunch. But now you have this court, which is also ruled that not only does and not only is there taco Trump always chickens out, but Trump is always generally wrong in court. And we'll continue to follow it right here on the Midas Touch Network and on Legal AF. Take a moment, come over to Legal AF, the YouTube channel. Hit the subscribe button there. We're doing about a dozen videos per day at the intersection of law and politics, along with our Legal AF substack, where we're putting it all together one stop shopping law and politics. So until my next report, I'm Michael Popak. Can't get your fill of Legal af.
Unknown Speaker
Me neither.
Michael Popak
That's why we formed the Legal AF substack. Every time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument, come over to the substack. You'll find the court filing and the oral argument there, including a daily roundup that I do called wait for it Morning af. What else? All the other contributors from Legal AOFF are there as well. We got some new reports, reporting, we got interviews, we got ad free versions of the podcast and hot takes where Legal AF on Substack. Come over now to free subscribe.
Legal AF by MeidasTouch – Episode: "Trump Attempts Sudden Reversal After His Own Court Blocks Him" (Released May 31, 2025)
Hosts:
In this episode of Legal AF, hosted by the MeidasTouch Network, the discussion centers around former President Donald Trump's recent legal challenges pertaining to his attempt to unilaterally impose new tariffs. The episode provides a comprehensive analysis of the court's decision to block Trump's actions, the legal ramifications, and the potential pathways for appeal. Michael Popak leads the conversation, offering expert insights into the intersection of law and politics.
Michael Popak delves into the recent ruling by the Court of International Trade in New York, which unanimously decided that Donald Trump lacks the constitutional authority to impose the contested tariffs. The court's decision was a significant setback for Trump, especially since he strategically chose this particular court, anticipating a favorable outcome due to its composition of judges appointed by both Obama and Trump administrations.
Legal Basis of the Ruling:
Impact on Commerce and Small Businesses:
Economic Ramifications:
Popak provides an in-depth explanation of the legal processes following the court's decision:
Summary Judgment and Permanent Injunction:
Pathway for Trump’s Appeal:
Global and Domestic Strategies:
Michael Popak offers a critical perspective on Trump's approach to economic policy and his handling of legal challenges:
Inconsistency and Erratic Decision-Making:
Effects on the US Economy:
Legal Integrity and Governance:
Constitutional Checks and Balances:
Legal Precedents and Future Implications:
Economic Stability and Legal Assurance:
Political Ramifications:
Michael Popak (03:45): “The tariffs have been suspended, and the world economy has responded with a global yippee, indicating that markets believe the tariffs are in jeopardy.”
Michael Popak (04:50): “Every time Donald Trump has a phone conversation or a meeting with major corporations, he changes his mind about his economic policy.”
Michael Popak (05:00): “The President doesn't have the power to impose excise taxes and other taxes; that power lies with Congress.”
Michael Popak (07:15): “Nations are incorporating the fact that Trump is likely to fold into their negotiation strategies, which is why countries like Mexico and Canada have been so successful.”
Michael Popak (09:30): “The Federal Circuit, a specialty appeals court, will now review the decision. If Trump loses here, his next option is the United States Supreme Court.”
This episode of Legal AF provides a thorough examination of Donald Trump's failed attempt to impose new tariffs unilaterally, the legal challenges he faces, and the broader implications for executive power and economic policy. Michael Popak's expert analysis offers listeners a clear understanding of the judicial processes involved and the potential future developments in this high-stakes legal battle.
Stay Connected: For more in-depth legal analysis and updates, visit the Legal AF YouTube channel and subscribe to the Legal AF Substack for comprehensive coverage of law and politics intersecting daily.