Trump Raises Global Tariffs to 15% After Supreme Court Strikes Down Emergency Duties

President Donald Trump is raising global tariffs to 15 percent, just one day after imposing a 10 percent rate—a rapid escalation that California Governor Gavin Newsom called "madness."

"It was 10% 2 days ago, maybe 20% tomorrow," Newsom said Saturday. "The whole thing is a farce."

The back-to-back tariff announcements came after the Supreme Court ruled Friday that Trump's sweeping emergency tariffs from last year are illegal. But the high court's decision only applies to duties the president imposed using one specific law, and Trump immediately pivoted to other legal authorities to keep tariffs in place.

"Other alternatives will now be used to replace the ones that the court incorrectly rejected," Trump said.

The law Trump is now relying on for his 15% global tariffs requires Congress to approve the duties within 150 days for them to remain in effect—a timeline that could prove challenging given Democratic opposition.

Democrats are demanding the government refund tens of billions of dollars U.S. companies already paid under last year's tariffs. "He needs to return that money with interest," Newsom said. "They can do it electronically. They have the tariff codes."

But Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says it's not that simple. "The Supreme Court did not address refunds," Bessent said. "The Supreme Court remanded it down to a lower court. That could be weeks or months when we hear them."

Trump is set to address his tariff policies at his State of the Union address to Congress Tuesday night. The speech will air on NBC Palm Springs at 6 p.m.