Morning Brief: Trump SCOTUS Wins, Trade War & Nuclear Talks With Iran

The Supreme Court hands President Donald Trump two wins – one on deportation and another on downsizing the government. The stock market sees another turbulent day, leading to China increasing its reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports to 84%. And, Trump is set for nuclear negotiations with Iran but warns that the regime might be in jeopardy if talks go south.

It’s Wednesday, April 9, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:

Supreme Court Clears The Way For Deportations & DOGE

(Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)

Topline: The Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for the Trump administration to deport alleged illegal alien gang members under a 1798 law. 

The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that President Trump may use the Alien Enemies Act to deport suspected gang members –  but the court also said those potential deportees have a right to due process. The decision had both sides of the case claiming victory.

“Today is a bad day to be a terrorist in the United States of America,” Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said on Monday. “Today, the Supreme Court came out with a decision that reaffirmed that President Trump was correct in using his authority on using the Alien Enemies Act to deport terrorists out of this country. Thank you President Trump for your leadership in making America safe again.”

However: The justices unanimously agreed that in each case, the alien has a right to have his deportation order reviewed by a judge. 

The case was brought by a group of Venezuelan nationals. They filed suit in the D.C. District Court and the case fell to Judge James Boasberg – who has frequently ruled against the administration. Boasberg put a freeze on not only the deportations. The Supreme Court said the lawsuit should have been filed in Texas, where the deportees were being held.

The illegal immigration case was related to a lower court judge’s deadline for the administration to return a mistakenly deported Salvadoran national to the United States. Kilmer Abrego Garcia, 29, was mistakenly deported to El Salvador – he had previously said he would face violence if deported back to his home. A judge had given the Trump administration until midnight on Monday to get him back to the United States. The administration said that timeline was impractical, and the Supreme Court agreed.

In other news: The Supreme Court knocked down a lower court order that blocked Trump from cutting 16,000 probationary workers from the federal government

The Trade War Continues: Allies Seek Detente, Rivals Escalate

(Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Topline: One week after Liberation Day, President Trump says he is gearing up for formal tariff negotiations with trade partners, offering optimism for consumers and markets as China raises its reciprocal tariffs on U.S. goods to 84%. 

On Tuesday, the president announced major developments on a trade deal with South Korea, America’s sixth-largest trading partner. Writing on Truth Social, Trump said he’d just finished a “great call” with acting President Han Duck-soo, adding, “We have the confines and probability of a great DEAL for both countries. Their top TEAM is on a plane heading to the U.S., and things are looking good.” 

According to the South Korean government, they’re willing to import more American products, particularly natural gas, in exchange for reduced tariffs. Likewise, the president said Japan, our fourth-largest trade partner, is sending a negotiating team to Washington to meet directly with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

In the coming days, the Trump administration will host representatives from Vietnam, our tenth-largest trading partner. And on April 17, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will visit the White House to negotiate on behalf of the European Union. All told, the White House says nearly 70 countries have expressed a desire to negotiate.

“To countries around the world, bring us your best offers and [President Trump] will listen,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday. “Deals will only be made if they benefit American workers and address our nation’s crippling trade deficits. America does not need other countries as much as other countries need us and President Trump knows this.”

However: Beijing appears to be digging its heels in for a drawn-out trade war. On Wednesday, China, America’s largest trading partner, said it would increase its reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports to 84%. This was after China had doubled down, saying it would “never accept such treatment” before slapping additional 34% tariffs on U.S. imports. China accused the White House of economic “blackmail,” and Trump responded with a 50% tariff on top of those already in place — starting at midnight on April 9, when the Chinese began facing 104% tariffs on all goods coming to America. It’s not exactly breaking news that the U.S. imports a lot of stuff from China — the expected price increases on those goods are clearly spooking investors.

Trump Announces “Top Level” Talks With Iran

(Photo by Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Topline: On Monday, President Trump announced that his administration will have “top-level” direct talks with Iran.

During a meeting in the Oval Office with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Trump announced that he would be open to negotiations with Iran on Saturday. If these talks do not go well, Trump said that the Iranian regime will be in “great danger.”

“It’s not a complicated formula,” Trump said. “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, that’s all there is. Right now we have countries that have nuclear power that shouldn’t have it but I’m sure we will be able to negotiate out of that too as part of this later and down the line. But Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and if the talks aren’t successful, I actually think it will be a very bad day for Iran.”

President Trump said the talks would be high-level and direct but declined to say where they would occur. However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi later said the talks would take place in Oman and be indirect. In a post on X, Araqchi wrote, “It is as much an opportunity as it is a test. The ball is in America’s court.” Iranian state-run media gave some more purported details – they reported that the talks would be between Araqchi and U.S. Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, with Oman’s foreign minister Badr al-Busaidi as a mediator.

Iran and the United States will meet in Oman on Saturday for indirect high-level talks.

It is as much an opportunity as it is a test. The ball is in America's court.

— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) April 7, 2025

Remember: Trump was an outspoken critic of former President Barack Obama’s 2015 nuclear deal with the Iranian regime, calling it “one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into” and withdrew from it in 2018. Throughout his entire first term, Trump waged a “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran in hopes of curbing both its nuclear program and its support of terror around the world. Under President Joe Biden, Iran’s various proxy groups in the Middle East ramped up their aggression: in Yemen, the Houthis began attacking shipping vessels in the Red Sea, and in Gaza, Hamas launched the October 7 terror attacks, killing roughly 1,200 people in Israel. 

Trump is pursuing a deal now because Iran is reportedly weeks away from producing a nuclear weapon. The Trump administration has taken extensive military action against the Houthis, which could be construed as a show of force against their Iranian backers, and American military assets have surged to the region in preparation for a possible strike.