Legality, Next Steps for Canadian Tariffs

Feb 14, 2025

1 min

Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University Professor Julian Ku was quoted in The Globe and Mail article “The best hope for Canada in fighting a trade war with Trump may lie in U.S. courts."

“Using IEEPA to impose tariffs has not been done before, so there has never been a court ruling on this question,” said Julian Ku, who studies the interaction of international law and U.S. constitutional law at Hofstra University.

Mr. Trump has, however, argued that he is responding to external threats, citing the movement of fentanyl and illegal migrants to the U.S. from Canada, Mexico and China. That is likely to prove a potent defense, Prof. Ku said.

“The court has also been deferential to the President on national-security matters, and the language of the statute is very broad, so it is far from clear which way the court would come down on this issue,” he said.

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Julian Ku

Professor of Law and Interim Dean

The Maurice A. Deane Distinguished Professor in Constitutional Law and Professor of Law.

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Jul 28, 2026

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Deaths, resignations in Congress test narrow majority

United Press International (UPI wire service) interviewed Meena Bose, Hofstra University professor of political science, executive dean of the Public Policy and Public Service program, the Kalikow Chair in Presidential Studies and director of the Kalikow Center for the Study of the American Presidency, about the death of Senator Lindsey Graham and President Donald Trump‘s choice of the late Senator’s sister Darline Graham Nordone, to succeed him. Until the midterm elections, Nordone will hold that position in an honorary capacity. There are four active vacancies on Capitol Hill with Nordone filling Graham’s seat. “The issue here is really that there have been vacancies and resignations and that the margin is so narrow for party control, particularly in the House of Representatives,” Dr. Bose told UPI. “The number of resignations or decisions not to run for re-election is indicative of questions about why people want to serve in office or indicative of a question of are people hesitant to serve in public office, and if so, why?”

Jul 20, 2026

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Poor Air Quality Moves Summer Activities Indoors

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Jul 20, 2026

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A New Tick Is Moving In on Long Island — And Changing the Landscape for Lyme Disease

There's a new tick establishing itself across the region, and it's not the one most people are used to watching for. The Asian longhorned tick, first detected in the U.S. in 2017, has been steadily expanding its range along the East Coast — including into the backyards, parks, and preserves of Long Island. Unlike the blacklegged tick most associated with Lyme disease, this invasive species reproduces asexually, meaning a single tick can start an entire population, and it's showing up in numbers that are hard to ignore. Russell Burke, professor of biology at Hofstra University, has spent more than a decade studying the ecology of Lyme disease on a continental scale — including how tick host diversity affects disease risk across the eastern U.S. That work has now expanded to track a newer arrival: the Asian longhorned tick, and how its invasion and spread is reshaping the tick communities long dominated by the blacklegged tick, the primary vector of Lyme disease. What he can speak to: How the Asian longhorned tick got to the U.S., and why its ability to reproduce without mating makes it uniquely fast at colonizing new areas What the tick's expansion means for the local ecology of ticks on Long Island, and how it may be competing with or displacing established blacklegged tick populations Why the Asian longhorned tick is not currently considered a significant carrier of Lyme disease itself, but why its presence still raises concerns for public health and agriculture What residents, hikers, and pet owners should know about identifying and avoiding exposure to this new tick species The broader pattern of invasive species establishing themselves on Long Island, and what that signals about changing ecosystems Connect with: Russell Burke Professor of Biology Dr. Burke's current research involves diamondback terrapins at Jamaica Bay, wood turtles in northern NJ, ticks and Lyme disease, and the coyote invasion of Long Island. Key Topics: Ecology · Conservation Biology · Herpetology · Urban Ecosystems Reach Professor Burke through the Contact button on his profile below.