President Donald Trump will face the Supreme Court justices who handed him the most significant legal loss of his presidency when he delivers his first formal State of the Union address of his second term on Tuesday.
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Friday that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not authorize the president to impose tariffs, striking down the sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs that have been a cornerstone of Trump’s economic and foreign relations policy. The president is now set to come face-to-face on Capitol Hill with at least some of the justices who struck down his tariffs, and whom he has criticized following the ruling. Should Trump criticize the ruling or the high court itself to their faces during his address, he would not be the only president to do so.
Trump has become sharply critical of the justices after tariff ruling
Since the tariff ruling came down at roughly 10 a.m. on Friday, Trump has been deeply critical of the high court’s decision. The president described the ruling as a “disgrace,” privately cursing “these f***ing courts,” upon initially hearing of the Supreme Court’s decision.
Hours later, Trump called a press conference regarding the Supreme Court’s ruling, decrying it as “deeply disappointing” and tearing into the justices who joined the majority in striking down his tariffs.
“I’m ashamed of certain members of the court, absolutely ashamed for not having the courage to do what’s right for our country,” Trump said.
Trump accused “certain justices” on the high court of ruling against him on tariffs to be “politically correct” and accused the Supreme Court of being swayed by foreign interests.
He showered praise on Justice Brett Kavanaugh for his dissent, along with commending justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito for not joining the majority ruling.
When asked if the Supreme Court justices would be invited to his State of the Union address, Trump said that they were still invited — but “barely.”
“Three are happily invited,” Trump said. “They’re barely invited. Honestly, I couldn’t care less if they come.”
Obama and Biden previously called out the Supreme Court during their State of the Union addresses
As the president prepares for his first formal State of the Union since returning to the White House last year, multiple Supreme Court justices will likely be in the room with him watching on Tuesday — and he could follow his predecessors in taking a swipe at them after an adverse ruling.
During his 2010 State of the Union address, then-President Barack Obama took a jab at the high court over its ruling in Citizens United v. FEC, which found laws limiting political spending by corporations violated the First Amendment.
“With all due deference to separation of powers, last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century of law that I believe will open the floodgates for special interests, including foreign corporations, to spend without limit in our elections,” Obama said, seemingly aiming his criticism at the justices present in the House chamber.
After Obama made the claim about the high court’s ruling, Alito was seen mouthing the words “not true” to the president.
Former President Joe Biden also took aim at the Supreme Court during his final State of the Union address in 2024. Biden used the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which returned abortion lawmaking to the states, to proclaim abortion as a winning political issue, specifically with women voters, for his ultimately doomed reelection bid.
“In its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court majority wrote the following, and with all due respect, justices, ‘Women are not without — electoral or political power,’” Biden said. “You’re about to realize just how much.”
SUPREME COURT STRIKES DOWN TRUMP’S SWEEPING ‘LIBERATION DAY’ TARIFFS
During his 2025 address to a joint session of Congress, a traditional, unofficial State of the Union done by presidents who recently entered office, multiple justices attended. Chief Justice John Roberts, along with Justices Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, attended Trump’s 2025 speech, but it is not clear which justices will attend his 2026 address.
After Trump concluded his 2025 address, he thanked Roberts for swearing him in at the presidential inauguration weeks earlier. Trump’s remarks to the chief justice, who penned the majority opinion striking down his tariffs, may be less friendly this year.
