Rightwing group backed by Koch and Leo sues to stop Trump tariffs

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: The Guardian

Mon 7 Apr 2025 16.46 EDT
Last modified on Mon 7 Apr 2025 19.05 EDT


A libertarian group that has been funded by Leonard Leo and Charles Koch has mounted a legal challenge against Donald Trump’s tariff regime, in a sign of spreading rightwing opposition to a policy that has sent international markets plummeting.

The New Civil Liberties Alliance filed a suit against Trump’s imposition of import tariffs on exports from China, arguing that doing so under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) – which the president has invoked to justify the duties on nearly all countries – is unlawful. The group’s actions echo support given by four Republican senators last week for a Democratic amendment calling for the reversal of 25% tariffs imposed on Canada.

Last Wednesday’s amendment passed with the support of Mitch McConnell, the former Republican Senate majority leader, and his fellow GOP members Rand Paul, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, who argued that tariffs on Canada would be economically harmful.

The action from the alliance has the potential to be even more emblematic, given its past backing from Koch, a billionaire industrialist, and Leo, a wealthy legal activist who advised Trump on the nomination of three conservative supreme court justices during his first presidency, which has given the court a 6-3 rightwing majority.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/07/trump-tariffs-lawsuit

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REFERENCE - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143435451

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Things seem different when YOUR ox is gored . . . .

[DENVERPOPS]

35. The political equivalent of

"NOT IN MY BACK YARD"..........LOL

Under hypocrite in the dictionary, is a one word definition: Republicans

[Lovie777]

2. Say what?................

[Chasstev365]

3. FUCK YOU GUYS:

YOU own the monster YOU created!

[orangecrush]

8. This

[KPN]

18. This

[Initech]

31. Seriously! Fuck all these clowns who made this nightmare happen!

[Deminpenn]

4. Leonard Leo has gotten a lot of his friends appointed to the federal courts,

not to mention SCOTUS. I'd say this lawsuit has a decent, maybe even good, chance of succeeding.

[mwmisses4289]

9. It might succeed,

but it will ignore it, just like it has ignored all the other judgements that have gone against it.

[PortTack]

43. He won't be able to ignore a law suit brought by Leo. Leo is saying stop, or I will take you down.

In fact I’m going to wager that the law suit will be dropped because he’s going to have to stop. Orange man can’t go up against that kind of power and money

[OverBurn]

44. I hope you are right. I need my stocks back.

[PortTack]

42. Indeed! This is really very good news. Especially Leo...he has the politcal power and money to stop him

You can bet the gop in congress will sit up and take notice! The message is stop this….If you don’t, all big money will stop for your reelection.

I’d be willing to bet orange man will begin to spin and pull back. He’s toast if he doesn’t. He can’t go up against Leo and anger the far right

[Hope22]

5. There is a price to pay!

FAFO!! At least they haven’t jammed you in a plane yet!

[Marthe48]

14. Waiting

All of the traitor class need to be deported. Maybe launched into space on a cargo capsule.

[Hope22]

15. Whatever it is...

Won’t be enough. I’m good with life in a real prison.

[BOSSHOG]

6. Dr Frankenstein sues Himself

[orleans]

28. well said. :) nt

[Scrivener7]

7. If he loses Leo, he loses Leo's Opus Dei army.

[SharonAnn]

29. Good!

[Scrivener7]

41. I think Leo is also one of the hands controlling the Heritage Foundation.

This is kind of awesome.

[2naSalit]

10. ...

[C_U_L8R]

11. I was wondering when Koch would raise his hand

All his toilet paper depends on Canadian imports.
And again, Republicans never care until the bad shit happens to them.
Hey you idiots, try thinking ahead for once.
And stop supporting incompetent assholes, clowns and nazis.

[Wicked Blue]

21. "Republicans never care until the bad shit happens to them"

... and they run out of toilet paper.

[Passages]

12. So, why did they trust the proven grifter wouldn't worry about them?

They're Not Tariffs, They're Sanctions

Stop trying to place coherence on a policy that’s really just a mob boss breaking legs and asking for protection money.
by David Dayen April 3, 2025

https://prospect.org/economy/2025-04-03-theyre-not-tariffs-theyre-sanctions/

[Ford_Prefect]

13. Someone explain to me why this isn't a sort of false flag option to spoil the legal arena for others?

[IbogaProject]

34. Wow that would be on point

Make a weak legal argument by a friendly team to get a SC ruling in the Turd Administration's favor. Whew I didn't consider that.

[AllaN01Bear]

16. sorry charlie.

[BigmanPigman]

17. Hearing Koch's name on PBS shows

still makes me pissed off. I heard it again after watching a Ken Burns doc on Vietnam a few days ago and a short rant with 4-letter words was out of my mouth before I knew it. Good thing I live alone. If I had to control my profanity I would have had a heart attack 20 years ago since I need to swear to release anger and frustration.

Koch is a greedy monster and a traitor to the USA. How come no one asks daily, "Is he dead yet?" like we do with tRump?

[Clouds Passing]

19. Can't stop that train they started.

[JohnnyRingo]

23. They can fund the campaigns of those who can cause a train wreck...

Republicans in Congress aren't supporting him (only) because they've lost their minds, they are in office because of donors like Koch.
Those funds can go to those who will impeach and charge with crimes. I imagine they will eventually sit him down and explain that to him.

[DENVERPOPS]

36. They key to the 2016 election was:

Putin and the NRA laundering hundreds of millions of Russian Oligarch Money through the NRA to "down ballot" Republican Candidates, not only Trump...........

[Clouds Passing]

45. The kochs and leos don't want to look like they are a big chunk of the blame for this

shit show they’ve caused. Kochs have been in with russia a long time.

[bronxiteforever]

20. But these good Christian men couldn't care

less about humans in torture and enslave third world prison camps. These guys values are disgusting.

[JohnnyRingo]

22. I saw this coming a couple weeks ago.

Tax cuts mean little when the American consumer is skittish about spending money on your product.
Investors don't care as much about your deregulation if the stock market isn't delivering robust profits.
Soup lines and homeless Americans may be a Stephen Miller fantasy dream, but they make no one wealthy in a free market..

I expect to see a consortium of businesses take Trump aside and explain how they fund the campaigns of those who can impeach him and charge him with crimes against humanity,

[WokeAintWhatIAm]

24. It was at this moment...

They knew - they fucked up...

[mcar]

25. They are starting to eat their own

[Deep State Witch]

26. So, tell me, leopards

Do billionaires' faces taste better?

[et tu]

27. old and stringy lol nt

[DonCoquixote]

30. when you cannto even get these guysto be your friends

You, Mr. Trump, have screwed up.

[Emile]

32. Start of the republican civil war.

🍿 🍿

[Warpy]

33. This is going to be fun to watch as the country burns down

because it's a clash of the titans: old money vs. new, mainstream industry versus techies, east coast versus west coast, solid bank accounts versus a lot of fancy footwork involving accounting tri ks and maximum leverage to give the illusion of even greater wealth.

I've spent the last 19 years trying to get into a defensive position against both the free/unfair trade dinosaurs and the isolationist no-traders. We'll see how well I managed in about 10 years, if I'm unlucky enough to be alive.

[sakabatou]

37. Did the leopard bite your faces, Koch and co.?

[SergeStorms]

38. You created him.....

now SUFFER!

[Hekate]

39. How sweet. They're turning on each other.

[PortTack]

40. When ya lose Leonard Leo...well ya should know you've gone too far! Next "chess" move donnie?

[Karasu]

47. It's insane how little attention the media in this country pays to that fucking guy.

[JPK]

48. He'll call the U.S. Marshall's

Trump will have him arrested. Maybe a vaca in El Salvador.

[Karasu]

46. In case it wasn't already clear that Frankenstein's monster has left the fucking building.

[4catsmom]

50. they don't know

what to think about him. Let me simplify: No matter how much support you give him he's going to screw you, and the more you support him and worse he's going to screw you.

[regnaD kciN]

51. "The rich have such TASTY faces!" - Leopards