KJS DC, USA, the Corruption Capitol of the World: And where the SEC is always sleeping…2.26

Let’s be crystal clear about what just happened.

For a year, Trump slapped tariffs on everything—no congressional authorization, no legal process, just executive orders, changing rates in real time [while his Treasury Secretary and his sons hedged the whole thing to profit 20-30% on the volatility.]

Companies absorbed those tariffs, then immediately passed the cost to us. Prices went up. We paid more for everything. The market got a false inflation signal that rippled through the entire economy.

Sophisticated investors made money up and down, the whole year while Main Street investors got a bump on their everyday pricing and little more than average on their 401ks.

Then the Supreme Court said it was illegal.

Now 1,800+ companies are lining up in federal court demanding refunds—with interest.

The gall.

Guess who doesn’t have a line for rebates? You guessed it: Us.

Con man President

Importers paid tariffs at the border. Treasury collected the money. Congress didn’t authorize nor watch the proceeds even through they were on our books.

Companies raised prices on consumers to cover the cost. We paid the markup.

Now the tariffs are ruled unlawful. Companies will get refunds because Treasury owes them back—with interest.

We get nothing. All the hikes into corporate profits. US deficit increases.

Bravo, brainless con man, President.

But Wait, There’s More

That tariff money didn’t sit in a lockbox. It flowed into Treasury’s general fund and got spent. Seriously.

Now Treasury owes refunds it doesn’t have sitting around. Courts, Customs, and Treasury are playing hot potato with as to who pays, while Trump says litigation could drag on five years.

BTW, what’s the cost of all this, Republicans, don’t you want to know?

Meanwhile, sophisticated investors— who bet the signals tariffs—made money hand over fist on the volatility. Up and down. Pricing risk in, pricing risk back out. Wee….

A year of unauthorized tariffs created artificial inflation, market volatility, and price distortions across the economy.

Secretaries and their buddies stood to make 20-30% returns. Do you think they didn’t play the market like a rigged casino while we absorbed price hikes on groceries? Do you think they didn’t laugh about it too?

The Kicker

Prices are high. It’s not their fault, thinks the company.

Prices are still high. Even when / if companies get refunded, do you think they are going to pass savings back – even though they know we paid for it and have over-paid ever since?

Big fat never.

They already pocketed our markup. Then they’ll get reimbursed by Treasury—that’s us, the taxpayers—while keeping the profits they extracted from you during the chaos – and then making more when Wall Street congratulates them on margins.

Goldman Sachs already said inflation from these tariffs won’t fade much even as they roll back.

How defrauded do you feel?

We paid at least three times, didn’t we: once in higher prices, then paying for the refunds, and again in the deficit we carry paying continued higher pricing.

And then there’s another….

Deficit Bomb

Congress never authorized this spending.

Now we’re in arrears. If companies band together and demand full rebates—which they will —we’re looking at massive Treasury payouts funded by… more deficit spending. We pay that one later.

Our leverage with other countries? Down. Risk on our economy? Through the roof. MAGA’s business base? About to borrow from their 401k to pay for life today.

To Anyone Awake

You just watched the government:

• Illegally impose tariffs without congressional authorization
• Let insiders profit on the volatility
• Force us to absorb price hikes
• Get overruled by courts
• Prepare to reimburse corporations with taxpayer money
• Leave us with nothing

What fake business people this Administration has. They couldn’t sell lemonade without getting audited.

This is what oligarchy looks like.

The rules don’t apply. Insiders profit. We pay. Twice.

Welcome to class warfare.