As the Supreme Court prepares to hear one of the most consequential economic cases in decades—the legality of President Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs—one of the original architects of his trade agenda says the president has gone too far to turn back.
Wilbur Ross, who, as the president’s commerce secretary from 2017 to 2021, helped design the first wave of Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs during his first term, told Fortune a total defeat from the Supreme Court is unlikely. But even if it comes, Trump won’t walk away.
“He’s too committed to the tariff to give it up,” Ross said. “If they lose, I don’t think he’s just going to say, ‘Well, okay, it didn’t work under this law, I’ll give it up.’ He’s too invested.”
“We were upheld throughout,” he recalled. “That gave a better definition to what the government could do.”
This time, however, Ross noted the administration “didn’t do much” of the same administrative process, meaning Trump’s team is entering the court on weaker ground than before.
“They were in a hurry to get things going,” he said. “That’s taking a bit more risk.”
Ross sees the case as a toss-up, but predicts the court won’t overturn the entire program. Striking all the tariffs, he warned, would create global turmoil.
Ross, known in business circles as the “King of Bankruptcy” for restructuring struggling industries before joining the administration, sees the current fight as a familiar risk–reward play. The danger, he said, isn’t just losing the case, but also creating ambiguity for companies that depend on predictable trade rules.
“Markets can adjust to good news or bad news,” he said. “What markets have trouble with is uncertainty.”
