WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he plans to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court as early as Wednesday. This move aims to overturn a recent ruling that deemed many of his tariffs illegal, raising concerns about his global trade strategy.

Trump stated, "If you took away tariffs, we could end up being a Third World country," during a press briefing in the Oval Office. He emphasized the need for an expedited ruling on the matter.

Last Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs and fentanyl-related duties exceeded his authority under the national security statute he invoked. The president utilized the International Economic Emergency Powers Act of 1977, known as IEEPA, to impose these tariffs, despite the statute not explicitly mentioning tariffs or similar terms. The appeals court has allowed the tariffs to remain in effect until October 14, giving the Trump administration time to present its case to the Supreme Court.

"We're going to be going to the Supreme Court, we think, tomorrow because we need an early decision," Trump said. He reacted strongly to the appeals court's decision, labeling it a "Liberal court" and claiming that the lawsuit's proponents are from "foreign countries."

The case combines two separate lawsuits: one from five American small businesses challenging the global tariffs and another from 12 states opposing both the "Liberation Day" tariffs and the fentanyl-related duties. Trump warned that without these tariffs, "this country is in serious serious trouble" and attributed a recent decline in financial markets to the uncertainty stemming from the ruling.

IEEPA grants the president the authority to regulate economic transactions following a national emergency declaration. Trump is the first president to apply this statute to tariffs, having declared fentanyl-related emergencies at the borders to impose duties on Canada, Mexico, and China. These tariffs do not affect goods compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).

In April, Trump expanded his trade war globally, imposing tariffs on nearly all countries, citing America's trade deficits as a national emergency. While some countries, including the United Kingdom, Japan, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the European Union, reached agreements with the Trump administration, many steep tariffs remain.

An agreement with Canada has not been reached, and Trump raised tariffs on Canada to 35 percent in early August, citing fentanyl and retaliatory tariffs as reasons. U.S. government data indicates that only a small amount of fentanyl is seized at the northern border. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has warned that Canada may not be completely exempt from Trump's tariffs.

Although much of the cross-border trade is currently protected by CUSMA, Canadian industries are facing challenges from Trump's sectoral tariffs on steel, aluminum, copper, and automobiles. Canadian officials are also wary of potential tariffs on lumber.

Even if the Supreme Court rules against Trump's IEEPA tariffs, those duties could persist because he enacted them under different powers from Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

Last week, Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, reporting progress on a new economic and security agreement. Canadian officials are seeking ways to alleviate the impact of Trump's sectoral tariffs.

On Tuesday, Trump reiterated his claim that "Canada called" regarding his "Golden Dome" missile defense plan, stating that Canada would need to contribute between $61 billion and $71 billion to participate. "Canada wants very much to be included in that," he said, while announcing the relocation of the U.S. Space Command from Colorado to Alabama. "And we are going to work something out with them, I hope."