Trump tells governors he has 'to do something about these courts' after learning of tariff ruling during private meeting

President Trump was meeting privately with governors at the White House when he was handed a note informing him of the Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling striking down his IEEPA tariffs. According to two people briefed on the conversation, Trump called the ruling 'a disgrace' and said he has 'to do something about these courts.' The meeting ended shortly thereafter. Trump later held a press conference where he escalated his attacks, calling the six justices who ruled against him 'a disgrace to our nation' and saying 'I'm ashamed of certain members of the court--absolutely ashamed.' He singled out the three conservative justices who joined the majority--Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Gorsuch, and Justice Barrett--calling them 'fools and lapdogs for the RINOs and the radical left Democrats' and described them as 'very unpatriotic and disloyal to our Constitution.' Trump also claimed without evidence that the majority had been 'swayed by foreign interests.' When discussing the justices' attendance at his upcoming State of the Union address, he said: 'They are barely invited.' The threat to 'do something about these courts' echoes authoritarian rhetoric about judicial independence and follows a pattern of Trump attacking judges who rule against him, from the 'so-called judge' who blocked his Muslim ban to his attacks on judges in his criminal cases.

"I have to do something about these courts." — Trump to governors in private White House meeting upon learning of Supreme Court tariff ruling, February 20, 2026