Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is not losing any sleep over the Supreme Court stepping in to block President Trump’s tariff strategy, and frankly, neither is the White House. Speaking Sunday on Meet the Press, Bessent said it is “very unlikely” the Court will interfere with what he called President Trump’s signature economic policy. Translation, the administration expects the law to hold, and expects the justices to stay out of the way.
Bessent made a point that Washington insiders hate admitting out loud. The Supreme Court does not enjoy detonating major national policy decisions unless it absolutely has to. “They did not overrule Obamacare,” Bessent noted, adding that the Court does not want to “create chaos.” That is a polite way of saying the justices understand the difference between constitutional review and lighting the economy on fire for fun.
The timing of his comments was no accident. Just a day earlier, President Trump announced a new round of tariffs on European goods tied directly to his push for U.S. control of Greenland. Until a “Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland,” as Trump put it, European exporters are about to feel some real pressure. This is classic Trump leverage, economic force instead of military conflict, something critics pretend not to understand every single time.
The tariffs mirror duties President Trump has already imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law that gives the president broad authority to act when faced with an unusual and extraordinary threat. Under the plan, goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland will face tariffs starting at 10 percent on February 1, rising to 25 percent by June 1.
Bessent defended the move as a necessary emergency measure, delivering one of the more revealing lines you will hear from this administration. “The national emergency is avoiding a national emergency,” he said. In other words, using economic pressure now is preferable to dealing with Russian or Chinese military expansion in the Arctic later. That logic is not complicated, even if European diplomats pretend it is.
President Trump has been clear for years that Greenland is vital to U.S. national security. With Russia and China expanding their footprint in the Arctic, the idea that America should politely ask permission while rivals move aggressively is laughable. Ownership matters. Control matters. Geography still matters, no matter how much globalists wish it didn’t.
European leaders responded with predictable outrage, issuing a joint statement accusing Trump of undermining transatlantic relations and promising solidarity with Denmark and Greenland. Strong words are easy when someone else is paying for your security. Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt to begin mapping out what comes next.
The Supreme Court is expected to rule before the end of its term, possibly as soon as this week. If Bessent is right, and there is little reason to think he is not, President Trump’s tariffs will stand. That would confirm what has been obvious since 2016. When it comes to economic power and national security, President Trump is not bluffing, and the courts are unlikely to stop him from using the tools Congress already gave him.
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