The House of Representatives voted 219-211 on Wednesday to repeal President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada. The Senate will take up the matter next, but even if the upper chamber votes to repeal them, the president would almost certainly veto the measure, and the veto would be highly unlikely to be overridden by a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress. If the Trump administration is going to ask Americans to foot the tariff bill, the least it can do is level with them. Instead, the administration is speaking out of both sides of its mouth, advancing one set of arguments before the courts and another in public.  Put simply, President Donald Trump’s tariffs are as unconstitutional as they are harmful to the American people and the economy. Congress should wake up and reclaim its constitutional power to tax. Until that time, Congress’ weakness demonstrates the need for a clear decision on the tariffs from the Supreme Court. Because so many legislators have shown an unwillingness to preserve their institution’s legitimate power, only the Supreme Court can now protect Congress’ power. The court is now considering challenges to the president’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. On Aug. 29, as one of those cases, V.O.S. Selections Inc. v. Trump, was pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick “declare[d] under penalty of perjury” to the court that “[w]ithout the viability of IEEPA tariffs, the United States would be weakened and would…

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The House of Representatives voted 219-211 on Wednesday to repeal President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada. The Senate will take up the matter next, but even if the upper chamber votes to repeal them, the president would almost certainly veto the measure, and the veto would be highly unlikely to be overridden by a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress. If the Trump administration is going to ask Americans to foot the tariff bill, the least it can do is level with them. Instead, the administration is speaking out of both sides of its mouth, advancing one set of arguments before the courts and another in public.  Put simply, President Donald Trump’s tariffs are as unconstitutional as they are harmful to the American people and the economy. Congress should wake up and reclaim its constitutional power to tax. Until that time, Congress’ weakness demonstrates the need for a clear decision on the tariffs from the Supreme Court. Because so many legislators have shown an unwillingness to preserve their institution’s legitimate power, only the Supreme Court can now protect Congress’ power. The court is now considering challenges to the president’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. On Aug. 29, as one of those cases, V.O.S. Selections Inc. v. Trump, was pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick “declare[d] under penalty of perjury” to the court that “[w]ithout the viability of IEEPA tariffs, the United States would be weakened and would…

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