The president of Unifor Local 444 and the CEO of the Windsor Essex Chamber of Commerce are both hesitant on what this means going forward now that the Supreme Court has ruled against Trump's tariffs.
James Stewart and Ryan Donally are reacting to the news that broke Friday morning of the U.S. Supreme Court striking down most of President Donald Trump's global tariffs.
The ruling doesn't affect the sector-specific tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum, lumber and automobiles, while the broad 35 per cent duties against Canada don't apply to goods compliant under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade agreement.
In a 6-3 ruling, the court concluded it was not legal for Trump to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, better known as IEEPA, for his "Liberation Day'' tariffs and fentanyl-related duties on Canada, Mexico and China.
While Stewart and Donally acknowledge that this ruling is a step in the right direction, there's concern over the remaining tariffs in place, and what Trump might have "up his sleeve".
Stewart says unfortunately Section 232 - or steel and aluminum - are not included in this ruling.
"I don't think you have to go too far to connect the dots saying that the 232 ones are unjustified as well. I think that's real today, but it will be interesting how it plays out, and hopefully they come out the right side of things for our trade partners with the U.S."
He says this ruling doesn't mean much for the auto sector.
"We are protected under the USMCA, and that doesn't mean all of the car is, what it means is the vehicle itself if it falls under USMCA building rules, it's exempt from the tariffs except for the non-U.S. content," says Stewart. "So, there's still some tariffs there, companies are still paying tariffs."
The Local 444 President says the CUSMA negotiations later this year will be very important.
"Use our leverage in the renegotiations. There are things the United States needs. Yes, they have steel, and aluminum, and gas, but they also need it as well, they don't have enough in their country to sustain. So we have to use our leverage on the things that Canada has."
Meanwhile, Donally says this is still welcomed news to receive.
"For any border economy like Windsor-Essex with large exports, I mean... the United States, anywhere from 88 to 94 per cent of our exports head over there, so rules-based trade, and stable, not theoretical, it's foundational, right? This validates the concerns that we've had and it's great to see that this has been rectified."
Donally says Canada still needs to be cautious.
"This is a positive move that the Supreme Court has taken on, but I wouldn't be jumping up and down celebrating, I'm sure the Trump administration has the next playing cards that they're going to deal out at some point. I think we keep it low-key, I think this is a small step, but I think at the end of the day the most important relationship is the long-term CUSMA relationship that's going to be negotiated throughout the summer."
Trump has warned repeatedly that if the court ruled against his tariff agenda, it would lead to "catastrophic consequences" for national security, foreign policy and the economy.
Unifor states that while this decision represents a legal rebuke of presidential overreach, it does nothing to resolve the ongoing trade crisis threatening Canadian jobs and key industrial sectors.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer says the ruling is a decisive and welcome step forward.
-with files from AM800's The Kyle Horner Show & The Canadian Press