‘They were appointed by me’: Trump rebukes two Supreme Court Justices for tariff embarassment, but he’s still holding on for one impending decision

President Trump recently shared a lengthy post on Truth Social expressing his frustration with Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch, The Hill reported. This latest rebuke focuses on their participation in a 6-3 ruling issued in February that struck down the president’s attempt to use an emergency statute to justify increased trade rates. The president took aim at the two justices specifically because he appointed them to their positions.

In his post, the president wrote, “They were appointed by me, and yet have hurt our Country so badly! I do not believe they meant to do so, but their decision on Tariffs cost the United States 159 Billion Dollars that we have to pay back to enemies, and people, companies, and Countries, that have been ripping us off for years.” He added, “It’s hardly believable!”

The legal conflict stems from the Supreme Court’s decision to block the administration’s use of specific emergency powers to execute tariff policies. Following this, the high court ordered the United States to refund the funds collected from those tariffs. The president has been vocal about this financial impact, especially considering that Customs and Border Protection data shows over 330,000 importers paid these duties. Last month, the president stated he would keep track of companies that do not request a tariff refund.

Trump expressed significant disappointment that the Supreme Court Justices sided with the majority against his economic agenda

The president’s tone in his writing suggests he feels a sense of betrayal regarding the alignment of his appointees. He wrote, “I’m working so hard to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, and then people that I appointed have shown so little respect to our Country, and its people. What is the reason for this?” He also noted that while justices should do the right thing, he believes it is acceptable for them to show loyalty to the person who appointed them to the highest court in the land.

This tension has been building for some time. In February, the president described the decision made by Barrett and Gorsuch as an embarrassment to their families. When asked by reporters if those justices were still invited to the State of the Union address, the president replied that they were “barely” invited. He noted that he could care less if they chose to attend or not.

The history of these appointments is well documented. Neil Gorsuch was the president’s first Supreme Court nominee, tapped following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia and confirmed in April 2017. Amy Coney Barrett was nominated in September 2020 after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and was confirmed the following month. Despite these appointments, the president has struggled with the court’s recent rulings on his policy initiatives.

In his Friday evening post on Truth Social, the president compared the voting habits of his appointees to those he perceives among Democrats. He wrote, “What happened today with the two United States Supreme Court Justices that I appointed against great opposition, Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, whether people like it or not, never seems to happen with Democrats. They vote against the Republicans, and never against themselves, almost every single time, no matter how good a case we have.”

The president also directed criticism toward Chief Justice John Roberts in that same post. He wrote, “At least I didn’t appoint Roberts, who led the effort to allow Foreign Countries that have been ripping us off for years to continue to do so — But we won’t let it happen. The new TARIFFS, totally tested and accepted as Law, are on their way! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP.”

Looking ahead, the president is clearly worried about future legal hurdles. He concluded his Sunday post by urging the Supreme Court not to strike down his executive order regarding birthright citizenship. He wrote, “Well, maybe Neil, and Amy, just had a really bad day, but our Country can only handle so many decisions of that magnitude before it breaks down, and cracks!!! Sometimes decisions have to be allowed to use Good, Strong, Common Sense as a guide.”

He finished by stating, “A negative ruling on Birthright Citizenship, on top of the recent Supreme Court Tariff catastrophe, is not Economically sustainable for the United States of America.”