Adam Liptak

And five justices agree with him.

Yeah, so we're used to 6-3 decisions, right, Natalie?

But the usual 6-3 decision is the six Republican appointees versus the three Democratic appointees.

Right.

Here we have the Chief Justice and two Trump appointees, Justices Gorsuch and Barrett, joining the liberals.

And then in dissent, Justices Thomas, Alito, and Kavanaugh.

This kind of mix and match,

In a truly consequential case, and this, to be clear, Natalie, this is a major, major statement on presidential power.

And to see the right side of the court disagree is quite unusual.

It's really a different conception of the separation of powers, right?

The conservatives led by the Chief Justice, who thought Congress did not authorize these tariffs, think Congress has the leading role in this area.

Congress has the power to tax.

And if Congress is going to tell the president he can do something, it has to say so clearly, not by inference, but in plain language.

The other three conservatives in dissent were much more willing to...

infer from the structure of the Constitution and from the duties of the president to believe that the president has power in this area, even if this statute maybe is not as clear as it might be.

And I think there's a passage in Justice Neil Gorsuch's concurring opinion that kind of crystallizes and explains the nature of the dispute.

He says, yes, it can be tempting to bypass Congress when some pressing problem arises.

But the deliberative nature of the legislative process was the whole point of its design.

Through that process, the nation can tap the combined wisdom of the people's elected representatives, not just that of one faction or man.

Now, obviously, he's not mentioning President Trump, but the music of that really nice prose does hint at someone who is using tariffs impulsively.