President Donald Trump warned Tuesday that, “America would become a third world country” if his signature tariff policy was overturned, building on previous comments that eliminating his cornerstone economic policy would “destroy the United States of America.”

The warning from the President comes days after a federal appeals court ruled that the President’s use of emergency powers broke the law, sending the case back to the Court of International Trade to decide the damages. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi said that the administration would appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, hoping for the court’s conservative majority to side with the President. On Tuesday, Trump said that he asked the Supreme Court for an “expedited ruling” on the tariff decision.

In the meantime, the tariffs remain in effect.

However, despite Trump’s confidence in the Supreme Court, investors are weighing the possibility that the Supreme Court will ultimately rule against Trump and his tariffs. 

Doing so would introduce new uncertainty for thousands of American businesses; many of which have just begun to adjust to the President’s blind-siding economic policies. A decision against tariffs would also have far-reaching effects on the Republicans’ budget.

For one, the U.S. government would have to return Trump’s levies to affected businesses. Per recent data provided by the Treasury, that would require the return of most of the $142 billion in tariff revenue from this fiscal year. (The federal government’s fiscal year ends in September.)

In addition, it would take a key piece of revenue off the table for the federal government, exacerbating government funding worries. Republican leaders touted tariff revenue in an effort to excuse the enormous cost of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”, which narrowly passed in July. 

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” extended tax cuts first passed by the Republicans in their 2017 tax and budget bill, the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act. It added fresh funding for defense and border patrol, while taking an axe to social programs and science funding.

Without those promised revenues, the effects on the budget and deficit could be harrowing. The 30Y U.S. Treasury rose to nearly 5% on Tuesday, while Gold hit an all-time high of $3,600, reflecting the anxieties among investors.