If last week’s Supreme Court proceedings were any guide, the wide-ranging tariffs the US has been imposing in recent months are in serious jeopardy. Yet whatever the justices decide, the fog surrounding America’s trade policy won’t lift unless the White House changes its goals — not just its dubious methods.
When it imposed the so-called Liberation Day tariffs in April, the administration invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which gives the president exceptional authorities to respond to overseas crises. Last week, it argued before the court that trade deficits are a national emergency and that tariffs are an appropriate response. ...