r/politics New York 1d ago

California to Negotiate Trade With Other Countries to Bypass Trump Tariffs

https://www.newsweek.com/california-newsom-trade-trump-tariffs-2055414
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u/Wild_Harvest 1d ago

So wait, if I'm understanding correctly, then California is not negotiating to bypass Trump's tariffs but is willing to subsidize the tariffs and keep costs down, and in exchange the country will put in exemptions to products shipped to them from California but not, say, Nevada?

That could be a good way to both bypass the tariff, and prop up California's economy as the dominant force in the US. I could see New York doing something similar, too.

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u/Qubeye Oregon 1d ago

I'm not saying that is what they are planning to do.

My comment was meant to be more of a "I casually came up with a way to do it without violating the constitution."

I'm sure if I put more than thirty seconds of thought into it I could come up with even more robust, legitimate ways to do it.

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u/cjicantlie 1d ago

If the tariffs weren't enacted constitutionally, is it unconstitutional to bypass them?

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u/Exocoryak 19h ago

Executive Orders have the power of law, even if they appear to be unconstitutional. If they are not stricken down by the courts or revoked by an Act of Congress, they have the full power of a federal law.

Compare it to chess. Someone might play an illegal move, but if the opponnent doesn't see it and makes his move, it becomes a legal move afterwards, even though it technically was an illegal move at the time it was played.