Less Tariffs, Mas Vino
An apron launched to support the case against Trump's crazy tariffs
Friends,
Today, I’m sharing news of a cute new apron that may help save small businesses and keep wines prices down.
You may have read about the case to stop the Trump administration’s tariffs — currently 10% but threatened to become a crippling 30%, particularly painful for small businesses like wine importers, which have had to weather surging prices and constantly shifting trade policies without the level of cash flow that larger companies can dip into.
“We’re not a big company. We just can’t ride out that kind of storm,” said Victor Schwartz to CNN. He owns Vos Imports, an importer wine, sake and spirits from small-batch producers in countries including France, Lebanon and Japan.
Schwartz is now the lead plaintiff in the class action lawsuit, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. v. Trump, which was filed in April the U.S. Court of International Trade by The Liberty Justice Center, a nonprofit working to challenge threats to liberty across the country, taking on issues ranging from free speech to federal government overreach, educational freedom. The complaint challenged the Trump Administration’s authority to unilaterally issue the “Liberation Day” tariffs, arguing that the Administration has no authority to issue across-the-board worldwide tariffs without congressional approval.
To bring you up to speed, in May, a three-judge panel at the US Court of International Trade struck down Trump’s sweeping global tariffs in a unanimous decision finding the tariffs illegal and issuing a permanent injunction banning their enforcement.
But here’s the wrinkle; the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit granted the Trump Administration's motion to temporarily stay that injunction pending appeal. The Liberty Justice Center is once again on the case, working with appellate lawyers and constitutional scholars Michael McConnell and Neal Katyal; they filed a response brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on July 8.
Oral arguments in the government’s appeal are scheduled for July 31; The hearing will be held en banc which means it will be held in front of all 11 judges of the court. This is a good thing—it shows that the court is taking the case seriously, as this type of hearing is only used for the most important of cases and issues.
Meanwhile Trump continues to hem and haw and “negotiate” tariffs on imports from the EU. “The "negotiating," if you can call giving ultimatums negotiating, is ramping up from Trump,” explained Voss. “The last ultimatum was to increase duties on the EU to 30%. We also sell a significant amount of wine from Mexico which has also been slapped with a 30% tariff. All of these new tariffs are set to begin August 1, which is interesting because our case is being heard on July 31. I expect we will win again, the only question is if we can get an immediate injunction at that time on the tariffs.”
Now, here’s where you come in. The Liberty Justice Center is a nonprofit. They are entirely funded by donations and every bit helps. To support the appeals and the litigation efforts in this case in general, they have created some swag that both helps them and gives you something useful: a beautiful Anti-Tariff Apron ($39.99). It comes in two colors and is quite sturdy and attractive. Buy one for yourself and one for a friend!