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"Trump's tariff power, Harvard enrollments, Liverpool car crash, Spelling Bee."

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May 30, 2025

Good morning. Here’s the news you need to start your day:

Harvard: A federal judge said she would extend an order that blocked Trump’s effort to prevent Harvard from enrolling international students. Tariffs: An appeals court temporarily halted a ruling that invalidated Trump’s tariffs. Liverpool: The British police filed seven charges against a 53-year-old man after a car crash at a soccer parade. Spelling Bee: There’s a new national champion.

More news is below. But first, we explore tariffs and presidential power.

In New Jersey.  Kenny Holston/The New York Times

Tax man

	By German Lopez

Just how much power does the president have?

That was the question in front of the federal courts that ruled against President Trump’s tariffs in the last couple days. The judges weren’t deciding whether the tariffs are good for the country but whether the president has the power to impose them all by himself.

Maybe that sounds like a technical question. It’s not. It’s not an exaggeration to say that this question defines America. The framers rebelled against Britain because they felt that the king had too much power and that they didn’t have enough say in the politics that shaped their lives. They wrote the Constitution to avoid crowning another monarch.

Through that lens, a little-known trade court in New York blocked most of Trump’s tariffs, including those that remained from “Liberation Day.” Yesterday, an appeals court agreed to preserve the tariffs while it considers the case. The markets rose — cautiously — on the news. America’s trading partners also reacted skeptically because the rulings could lead to more chaos as legal battles play out.

Today, I want to focus on the question that the courts face.

At a joint session of Congress.  Haiyun Jiang for The New York Times

Checks and balances

At face value, the Constitution seems clear on this topic. It says Congress, not the president, has the power to “lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises.” And tariffs are taxes.

But Congress can delegate some powers to the president. It has passed several laws that allow the president to levy tariffs in case of emergency — say, if another country undermines a U.S. industry that’s important to national security. Trump used one of these laws, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, to impose his “reciprocal” tariffs on other countries. (Madeleine Ngo, who covers economic policy, explained the law.)

The president’s powers, however, are limited. In fact, the law Trump invoked originally intended to restrict the president’s tariff powers.

The courts ruled that Trump had breached the law’s limits. His allies described the decisions as a “judicial coup.” But in some sense the courts found that Trump was the one who tried to seize power that rightfully belongs to another branch, Congress.

A solution

For Trump, the rulings are frustrating. Tariffs are the centerpiece of his trade strategy, Tony Romm, who covers economic policy, wrote. Trump believes that he needs the levies to land trade deals and bring back jobs.

The same Constitution that limits Trump also offers a remedy to his problem: Congress could pass a law establishing his tariffs. His party controls the House and the Senate, and it’s even working on a tax bill. If Republican members of Congress believe in Trump’s agenda, they can simply formalize it.

For more: As the administration’s court losses pile up, so have its attacks on the judiciary.

CHINESE STUDENTS

Agnes Chang

The administration says it wants fewer Chinese students in the United States. What will revoking many of their visas mean? Here are a few figures and facts to put the move into context:

Of the 1.1 million international students in the U.S. during the 2023-24 academic year, some 277,000 were from China. (Only India sent more, 331,000. The number of Chinese had dropped 4 percent from the prior year, while the number from India surged 23 percent. The share of students from abroad at 193 U.S. colleges and universities has doubled since the start of the 21st century, to 15 percent from about 7 percent. Illinois Tech had the highest share: 51 percent. Overall, international students contributed about $43 billion to the economy in 2023-24, mostly through tuition and housing fees, according to NAFSA, an education group. New York University, Northeastern and Columbia had the most international students, according to a report by Open Doors, a research organization. At N.Y.U., their enrollment has increased nearly 250 percent over a decade. The most educated Chinese students stay in the U.S. after graduation. One study found that 90 percent of Chinese graduates of Ph.D. programs in science and tech fields from 2000 to 2015 were still in the country in 2017.

Related: The administration’s threats to revoke student visas are part of a broader effort to decouple the United States from China, Edward Wong writes.

THE LATEST NEWS

Health

The Trump administration canceled a nearly $600 million contract with Moderna to develop a bird flu vaccine for humans. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, has repeatedly questioned the safety of mRNA, the technology behind the vaccines. A report on children’s health, released last week by the Make America Healthy Again Commission, cited scientific studies that did not exist.

More on the Trump Administration

In Williamson, N.Y. Hilary Swift for The New York Times

“I feel outraged”: Migrant workers on rural New York’s fruit and dairy farms have sequestered themselves, fearful of Trump’s deportations. DOGE says the government has saved people billions by reversing rules on credit card fees and appliance standards. Data show that those reversals will actually increase costs. By pardoning those accused of white-collar crimes, Trump appears to be using his power to redefine criminality to suit his needs, Glenn Thrush writes.

Israel-Hamas War

The U.S. sent an Israeli-backed cease-fire proposal to Hamas. Hamas suggested that it didn’t contain strong-enough guarantees on ending the war. A contentious Israeli-backed aid distribution system has begun operating in Gaza. Patrick Kingsley, the Times’s Jerusalem bureau chief, explains its chaotic rollout. Click the video below.

The New York Times

Other Big Stories

Summer heat arrives in the Western U.S. today: Temperatures could top 100 in Boise, Idaho, and 106 in Las Vegas. A judge in South Africa sentenced a woman to life in prison after she was convicted of selling her 6-year-old daughter. The child is still missing. The N.Y.P.D. is investigating two detectives who provided security at the Manhattan townhouse where two cryptocurrency investors are accused of torturing a man for three weeks.

MUSK’S DRUGS

Elon Musk at a Trump rally last year in Butler, Pa. Doug Mills/The New York Times

As Elon Musk departs Washington, Kirsten Grind, an investigative journalist who has been reporting on his personal life, shares some findings from her latest story.

I have reported on Elon Musk’s drug use for years. Today, my colleague Megan Twohey and I published an article showing that, as he joined Donald Trump on the campaign trail, Musk was using drugs much more than the public knew.

Musk has said that he doesn’t like illegal drugs, and he told an interviewer that he took ketamine only with a prescription — a small amount every couple of weeks.

But we found that he had a serious ketamine habit and had used the drug sometimes on a near daily basis. Last year, he privately told people he was taking so much ketamine that it was affecting his bladder. He also took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms.

Our story looks at other details from his personal life, too, including his overlapping romantic relationships and the legal battles involving his brood of children. Read it here.

OPINIONS

In 1950, the U.S. deported a Chinese scientist who went on to build China’s space program. Americans should be worried that Trump might repeat history, Kathleen Kingsbury writes.

Here are columns by David Brooks on fighting wars for ideals and Michelle Goldberg on Musk’s legacy.

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MORNING READS

In Overbrook, Okla.  Meridith Kohut for The New York Times

‘Russian’ troops in Oklahoma: Re-enactments of historical battles are common. But pretending to fight in a fake modern war is a new phenomenon.

Toto: The company’s toilet won Japan’s heart. Can it conquer America?

Entry-level workers: For some recent graduates, the A.I. job apocalypse may already be here.

A bit of grace: When people go through challenges or scary situations, those who display more self-compassion are also more resilient, research shows.

Your pick: The most clicked article in The Morning yesterday was about a redesign of Mormon undergarments.

Trending: The actress Sydney Sweeney is selling a bar of soap infused with her bath water, The Cut reports. (The soap costs $8.)

Lives Lived: Bernard Kerik was New York’s police commissioner on 9/11. He later fell from grace after pleading guilty to federal corruption and tax crimes. He died at 69.

SPORTS

N.B.A: The New York Knicks lived to play another game after defeating the Indiana Pacers, 111-94, to force a Game 6. The Pacers still lead the series, 3-2.

N.H.L.: The Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers are set for a Stanley Cup rematch after the Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars.

ARTS AND IDEAS

Faizan Zaki Ting Shen for The New York Times

Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old from Plano, Texas, was crowned this year’s National Spelling Bee champion last night. His winning word: éclaircissement.

Yesterday’s final marked the close of the competition’s 100th anniversary. A lot has changed in a century. The Bee is now televised and attracts spellers from around the world. See a timeline of memorable moments from the contest’s history.

For more: Feeling inspired? Take a spelling quiz.

More on culture

Could you make a podcast with your ex-husband? CNN’s Christiane Amanpour is doing just that. A Times culture editor has made a playlist based on the best music festival he ever attended: Lollapalooza 1995. Listen to it here.

THE MORNING RECOMMENDS …

Craig Lee for The New York Times

Bake Chez Panisse’s not-too-sweet blueberry cobbler.

Spend 36 hours in Marseille.

Take our news quiz.

GAMES

Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangram was peacetime.

And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections, Sports Connections and Strands.

Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow.

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Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson News Staff: Desiree Ibekwe, Brent Lewis, German Lopez, Ashley Wu News Assistant: Lyna Bentahar Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch

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