American customs duties: “It’s good to have powers and counter-powers in democracies,” says Emmanuel Macron

President Emmanuel Macron welcomed on Saturday February 21 that there are “powers and counter-powers in democracies” after the major setback inflicted by the Supreme Court on Donald Trump’s aggressive trade policy, judged to be largely illegal.

“We want to continue to export (…) and do so with the fairest rules possible (…) and not be subjected to unilateral decisions,” declared the Head of State upon his arrival at the Agricultural Show, believing that we must “be in a logic of appeasement”.

Emmanuel Macron implicitly attacked French politicians who regularly attack the “government of judges” and the rule of law like the leaders of the Republicans, the National Rally or Reconquête who have recently castigated court decisions and, in particular, those of the Constitutional Council.

Trump’s counterattack

“It’s not bad to have a Supreme Court and therefore a rule of law for those who think that Supreme Courts are problems in political life,” he said, stressing that that of the United States had “looked at the Constitution” and decided that customs taxes did not respect it.

Despite the Supreme Court’s decision, the American president announced Friday evening a global customs tax of 10% which will come into force on February 24 for a period of 150 days.

This new rate also applies to countries or blocs that have signed trade agreements with Washington, such as the European Union (EU), Japan, South Korea or Taiwan, which had for example accepted a maximum rate of 15% customs surcharge.