A panel of judges at the US Court of Appeal for the Federal Circuit on Thursday expressed sharp skepticism over President Donald Trump’s comprehensive use of emergency forces to impose rates on countries. The hearing came when Trump ran against a self -imposed deadline on August 1 to finalize reciprocal trading transactions before dozens of rates would resume. The crux of the case is whether Trump has surpassed his authority by calling on the International Emergency Economic Powers (IEEPA) Act to justify an extensive tariff regime aimed at tackling the imbalances of the trade and to combat fentanyl trade. “The law itself never mentions the word” rates “,” one judge noted early in the hearing and the justification called a possible “death button of the Constitution” if allowed to stand. Businesses and states push back the challenge for Trump’s authority were brought by a coalition of small businesses and state attorneys -general. They argue that the rates, which were only issued in April under the so -called “Liberation Day” policy, disrupted the markets and were not based on any legally defined emergency. “The president’s chaotic allegation of that alleged authority, which changed by the day and destroyed the capital markets and the economy, illustrates both the breadth of the powers demanded by the president and the danger of unlimited authority in this domain,” the coalition in his legal command said. Trump: Rates are critical to the American survival in a message posted on his social media platform on Thursday morning, Trump drafted the lawsuit as an important role in the country’s economic future. “To all my great advocates who fought so hard to save our country, good luck in America’s big case today,” Trump wrote. “If our country could not protect itself using rates at rates, we would be” dead “, with no chance of survival or success.” The Trump administration has maintained that its tariff actions are needed to counteract ‘serious threats to the United States’ national security and economy, including the country’s balloon shortage and the Fentanyl crisis. Previous ruling took place legal doubts Thursday’s arguments after a ruling in May by the US Court of International Trade, which concluded that Trump did not have the authority to set up the rates unilaterally under IEEPA. The decision questioned whether the administration met the legal standard to demonstrate an “unusual and extraordinary threat.” The Court of Appeal remained that ruling, which could remain in effect while reviewing the case. The result can significantly affect both Trump’s legacy and future presidential authority to use emergency forces to form foreign economic relations. Doj: Court ruling would harm US interests, the Department of Justice, the defense of Trump’s actions, warned against far -reaching consequences if the court invalidated the rates. DOJ attorneys argued that it would “deprive the United States of America of a powerful tool to combat systemic distortions in the global trading system.” They further emphasized the urgency of the situation: “President Trump found that America’s exploding trade deficit, the implications of the deficit for our economy and national security, and a Fentanyl inner crisis that claimed thousands of American lives constitute national emergencies.”