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President Donald Trump is urging opponents to abandon legal challenges to his trade policies, warning that striking down tariffs would undermine record levels of U.S. investment and risk turning the nation into a “third world” economy.
“More than 15 trillion dollars will be invested in the USA, a record,” Trump wrote Sunday night on Truth Social. “Much of this investment is because of tariffs.
“If a radical left court is allowed to terminate these tariffs, almost all of this investment, and much more, will be immediately canceled! In many ways, we would become a third world nation, with no hope of greatness again. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!!! President DJT.”
Trump has made tariffs a centerpiece of his economic platform, portraying them as essential to protecting U.S. industries and boosting revenue. Courts are weighing challenges to parts of his trade agenda, raising questions about the long-term viability of his approach.
In another post on Sunday, Trump argued that tariffs are delivering results without harming consumers. “Prices are ‘way down’ in the USA, with virtually no inflation,” he wrote. “With the exception of ridiculous, corrupt politician approved ‘windmills,’ which are killing every state and country that uses them, energy prices are falling, ‘big time.’ Gasoline is at many year lows.
“All of this despite magnificent tariffs, which are bringing in trillions of dollars from countries that took total advantage of us, for decades, and are making America STRONG and RESPECTED AGAIN!!!”
Supporters on Capitol Hill echoed Trump’s position. Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that businesses want certainty amid ongoing litigation.
“The ultimate thing that I’m hearing, Kristen, more than anything else from all the companies that I’ve talked to, is they just want it to be set,” Lankford said Sunday. “They just want to know what the rules of the road are. Every time there’s a new court hearing, every time there’s a new change, it’s destabilizing for every one of our businesses. So let’s get all these things resolved as quickly as we possibly can.”
Lankford also rejected claims that tariffs are fueling inflation. “What we’re seeing right now is inflation is still stable at this point,” he said. “We’ve not seen a rise in inflation during this time period. As the White House has said over and over again, they’re watching that. They’re attentive to that to be able to make sure we don’t see that.”