this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2026
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Explain Like I'm Five
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He's using different mechanisms for enabling these new tariffs. The supreme court only said that the way the tariffs were created was unconstitutional.
Which, when they rule with a decision worded so narrowly (as they like to do), is sort of a wink to Trump that his behavior isn’t discouraged, but technically he just did it incorrectly and got caught. 6 to 3, of course.
To play devil's advocate here, the Supreme Court's job is to interpret whether a specific thing is lawful or not according to the Constitution. It's not to encourage or discourage any general behavior or to enforce morality (any more than a system of laws already does, anyway).
True; however, from the text of the opinion:
It’s a little more subtle, but what I’m picking up is, Hey Trump’s legal team (ya clowns), in this instance, you should find a way to “regulate” that does not involve “taxation” because that falls under congress’ jurisdiction. This is your way to do it. But it will be lost on Trump, of course, because he’s madder than a rattlesnake at a Thai wedding.
It was a split decision though, not the 6-3 on ideological lines that we normally get.