California sues Trump administration: Customs tariffs are illegal

California on Wednesday filed a lawsuit seeking to block US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs against foreign trade partners, accusing him of abuse of his power and of causing financial damages to the state and nation.

It was Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta who filed this indictment at the US District Court for the Northern District, arguing that the president does not have the authority to place tariffs unilaterally.

According to La Repubblica, they asked the court to immediately block these tariffs, with the argument that they are causing serious and irreparable damage.

This represents a direct challenge to Trump's entire tariff strategy, and if the indictment succeeds, it will stop the implementation of these tariffs throughout the country. As a result, other countries affected by these measures would benefit.

California, the most powerful liberal state along with New York, is at the center of this battle, and Governor Newsom has not concealed his ambition to run for president in 2028 at all.

"Donald Trump" wrote the governor on the X platform "has no authority to unilaterally establish the greatest tax increase of our time with its devastating tariffs. We'll take him to trial. He added: President Trump's illegal “Tarifat is creating chaos for our families, businesses and the California economy, increasing prices and jeopardising jobs. We're protecting American families who can't afford this chaos. ”

Attorney General Bonta clarified the action with these words: “The chaotic and casual implementation of tariffs by the president is not only disturbing but also illegal. Like the world's fifth largest economy, California realizes that global trade policy is not a game. ”

The indictment argues that Trump cannot use the 1977 Emergency Economic Powers Law to impose tariffs, claiming that Fentajl's traffic from China or the trade deficit poses a threat to national security. Under the Constitution, it is Congress that has the authority to set tariffs, and the law mentioned by the White House does not include tariffs as an emergency measure the president can take. Hence, this practice is considered illegal and is required to stop immediately because of the damage it has already caused.

In turn, the White House responded through spokesman Kush Desai: “instead of dealing with increased crime, the problems of the homeless, and the economic woes in California, Gavin Newsom is wasting his time trying to block President Trump's historic efforts to deal with the commercial deficit national emergency. Our administration remains committed to protecting American industries and our workers, with any means available from the tariff to negotiations. ”

California, if it were an independent state, would be part of the G7. This shows its vital weight for the American economy from Silicon Valley and Tribe to agriculture, defence and space industry. Even though Elon Musk has moved some of Tesla's factories to Texas for political reasons, he has been forced to keep the research centres in California. Since the time of “Summer of Love” and the Haight-Ashbury neighbourhood in San Francisco, California has always been at the forefront of liberalisation between New York and Massachusetts ] and is one of the countries most affected by climate change. For this reason, cultural and political division with Trump and its electoral base is deeper.

Practically, Mexico, Canada, and China are California's three main trading partners. During the past year alone, the state exported goods worth $173 billion and imported 491 billion. Compared to that, Italy looks small. New tariffs are seriously damaging the local economy, making Los Angeles's recovery more difficult after the January fires, which destroyed areas like Pacific Palisades and Altadena, at a cost of at least $2 billion. In addition, the damage is large even in important sectors such as tourism.

Over the past few months, Newsom has been trying to reassert politically with some more moderate decisions, for example, for the participation of transigrate persons in women's sports contests, and even dialogued with former Trump advisor Steve Bannon.

He believes this could make him more acceptable in the 2028 presidential elections. However, in terms of tariffs, he has decided not to back down not only because of the damage being done to California and the whole country, but also because he sees them as an economic error that could seriously damage Trump to voters.

For this reason California has been positioned as the flagkeeper of resistance./Periscopi/