US legal system fights back against Trump

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Judges blocked his tariffs and migration plans.

Get full access to Reuters.com for just £1/week. Subscribe now. Sustainable Switch Sustainable Switch   By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital Hello! It's a big day for legal eagles in Thursday's newsletter as a United States trade court blocked President Donald Trump's tariffs, while a federal court stopped his attempts to prevent migrant workers seeking work permits under a temporary parole program. Let's start with the tariffs, which have mostly been blocked by the U.S. court in a sweeping ruling that found the president overstepped his authority by imposing across-the-board duties on imports from U.S. trading partners. The Court of International Trade said the U.S. Constitution gives Congress exclusive authority to regulate commerce with other countries and that cannot be overridden by the president's emergency powers to safeguard the U.S. economy. Financial markets cheered the ruling. The U.S. dollar rallied following the court's order, surging against currencies such as the euro, yen and the Swiss franc in particular. Wall Street futures rose and equities across Asia also jumped. The court invalidated with immediate effect all of Trump's orders on tariffs since January that were rooted in the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a law meant to address "unusual and extraordinary" threats during a national emergency. The Trump administration has filed a notice of appeal and questioned the authority of the court. Also on my radar today: Why a Peruvian farmer's court loss may be a win for climate justice EU almost on track to reach 2030 climate goal Nissan offers buyouts to US workers, halts global pay rises, internal emails show   Wahida Habibi, Afghan refugee mother with her kids Zuleikha, Sharifullah and Ahmed, waiting for the school bus to arrive in Bowling Green, Kentucky, U.S. REUTERS/Amira Karaoud The parole program Meanwhile, a U.S. federal judge ordered Trump's administration to resume processing applications from migrants seeking work permits or more lasting immigration status who are living in the country temporarily under "parole" programs. The ruling by District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston will provide relief to thousands of migrants from Afghanistan, Latin America, and Ukraine who were granted a two-year "parole" to live in the country under programs established by Democratic former President Joe Biden's administration. The same judge had previously blocked the Trump administration from revoking the parole status of hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans. The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to pause her decision. Talwani, appointed by former President Barack Obama, rejected the Trump administration's claim that suspending the parole programs was within its broad discretion to direct immigration policy. Federal law still requires agencies under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to follow a lengthy process for granting or denying parole and other immigration relief, she wrote. The Homeland Security Department did not respond to requests for comment. New York's congestion pricing Elsewhere, a judge blocked the U.S. Transportation Department from withholding federal funding from New York as the Trump administration tried to stop Manhattan's congestion pricing program. New York launched its first-in-the-nation congestion pricing program in January which its governor Kathy Hochul said dramatically cut congestion and that funds raised from the program would underpin $15 billion in debt financing for critical mass transit capital improvements. The program charges most passenger vehicles $9 during peak periods to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street. U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman issued a temporary restraining order before issuing a preliminary injunction preventing the federal government from withholding approval of or funding for New York projects. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the government would appeal. Talking Points   Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate for South Korea's Democratic Party, votes during early voting at a polling station in Seoul, South Korea. Yonhap via REUTERS Gen Z gender divide: In democracies worldwide, a political gender divide is intensifying among Gen Z voters, with young men voting for right-wing parties and young women leaning left, a break from pre-pandemic years when both tended to vote for progressives. Click here for an in-depth Reuters report on South Korea's upcoming presidential election on June 3 where young women are expected to lead a broad political backlash against the main conservative party. Slave descendants lawsuit: Harvard University will give up ownership of photos depicting an enslaved father Renty Taylor and his daughter Delia – who were forced to disrobe – taken on a South Carolina plantation in 1850 for a racist study, as part of a settlement following a lawsuit by one of their descendants, Tamara Lanier. The photos will not go to Lanier as part of the settlement but instead will be turned over to the International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, along with pictures of five other enslaved people. Gaza aid: Click here for a diary account from Mervat Hijazi, a Palestinian mother of nine children, who provided a snapshot of the hunger plaguing the Palestinian enclave of Gaza. A global hunger monitor warned this month half a million people face starvation while famine looms. Israel started allowing some food to enter the territory for the first time since March 2 under a new U.S.-sponsored plan run by private contractors which involves distribution centres in areas controlled by Israeli troops. Mexico cartel child killers: Reuters spoke to 10 current and six former child assassins, as well as four senior cartel operatives, who said cartels are increasingly recruiting and grooming young killers. Although 15 security experts and those within the cartels say child recruitment is becoming more common, a lack of hard data makes the issue difficult to track. Click here for an in-depth Reuters report with accounts from former child cartel killers. ESG Lens   U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the United States will start "aggressively" revoking visas of Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields. President Donald Trump's administration has sought to ramp up deportations and revoke student visas as part of wide-ranging efforts to fulfill its immigration agenda. International students - of which India and China together account for 54% - contributed more than $50 billion to the U.S. economy in 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. ESG Spotlight  Kenyan author Ngugi Wa Thiong'o shows his book "Wizard of the Crow" during an interview with Reuters at a bookshop in downtown Nairobi, Kenya. REUTERS/Antony Njuguna Today's spotlight celebrates the life of a brilliant Kenyan author and activist, Ngugi wa Thiong'o, who died at the age of 87 on May 28. Although it is with great sadness that he has passed on, it is an honor to be able to highlight his work. Shaped by an adolescence where he witnessed Kenya's armed struggle for independence from Britain, Thiong'o took aim in his writings at colonial rule and the elites who inherited many of its privileges. Thiong'o's best-known works included his debut novel "Weep Not Child", which chronicled the Kenya Land and Freedom Army's struggle and "Devil on the Cross", which he wrote on toilet paper while in prison. Sustainable Switch was edited by Jane Merriman. Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website Sustainable Switch is sent three times a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. 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