US President Donald Trump’s sweeping “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariffs have seen obvious pushback from several nations but Trump has also had to deal with dissent within his country and even his own party.
A right-wing Washington DC-based group called the The New Civil Liberties Alliance has challenged the new tariff regime. The group is financially backed by Leonard Leo and Charles Koch.
Charles Koch, along with his late brother David, is a political mega-donor who, according to the BBC, has spent millions of dollars to support conservative policies, particularly causes that seek to roll back regulations.
Kochs’ dissatisfaction at his own party and its presidential pick is nothing new. Even back in 2018, ABC News reported the Koch network releasing a video attacking the rise of "protectionism" in America. That video was said to be an implicit swipe at the governing style and policy priorities during Trump’s first term in the White House, when he announced tariffs on steel and aluminium.
The latest legal case brought forward by the New Civil Liberties Alliance just adds to growing disquiet on tariffs among some of Trump’s usually vocal supporters, including billionaire and ‘special Government employee,' Elon Musk.
Reports suggest that the Trump administration will have to retreat after some grandstanding, or slip into a recession within a year.
