Administration officials are warning of calamity if courts remove the sweeping tariffs President Donald Trump imposed on emergency grounds. Trump has used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to place tariffs on goods from countries worldwide.

The president has crowed about the billions of dollars collected so far from tariffs. That money could be at risk if the White House loses the legal battle.

A federal appeals panel on Thursday appeared skeptical of U.S. President Donald Trump's argument that a 1977 law historically used for sanctioning enemies or freezing their assets gave him the power to impose tariffs.