Trump Stole Your Money. He Won't Give It Back.
The Supreme Court said Trump imposed an illegal tax on Americans, he plans to keep the money.
Donald Trump responded to the Supreme Court striking down his tariffs in the most predictable fashion. He threw a televised temper tantrum and then doubled and tripled down on what may be his last popular policy position.
After accusing the Supreme Court without evidence of being compromised by foreign actors, Trump used a different set of authorities to implement a 10% global tariff. On Saturday, he increased it to 15% — presumably because he woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
When I wrote about the tariff ruling on Friday, there was one major unanswered question.
What happens to the more than $170 billion in tariffs that Trump illegally collected?
The Supreme Court was bizarrely silent on the matter, sowing confusion. Trump danced around it at his press conference, but the Treasury Secretary answered the question later that day.
The former Wall Street tycoon, who is reportedly worth $600 billion, smugly bragged that none of the money would go back to the American people.
This presents Democrats with a massive opening and creates even more political peril for Trump and the GOP as the midterms near.
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You Paid for the Tariffs
This isn’t that complicated.
Tariffs are taxes on American businesses and people. Trump has argued, despite a mountain of evidence and economic literature, that foreign countries pay tariffs. That’s simply not true. The company importing the goods pays the tariffs and then passes those costs along to you.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that American consumers and companies paid nearly 90% of the cost of Trump’s tariffs in 2025. According to a study by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, the Trump tariffs cost the average American family an additional $1,000 that year.
Trump raised your taxes by $1,000 — which was, according to the Tax Foundation, the largest tax hike since 1993 and the 18th largest in history.
The Tariffs Were Illegal
The Supreme Court ruling, which included two justices appointed by Trump, is crystal clear: Trump did not have the authority to levy this tax on American businesses and consumers.
The tariffs were illegal.
Trump took your money.
And it wasn’t a close call. The Court did not reverse itself or change precedent. This was not a novel reading of the Constitution or legislative text. Trump’s tariffs relied on an incredibly aggressive and unprecedented interpretation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Many legal experts — including Republicans — warned that Trump was on shaky legal ground and that even a very pro-Trump Supreme Court could strike them down.
Yet Trump took your money anyway, and now he won’t give it back.
Democrats Should Run on Returning the Tariff Money
Within hours of the ruling, Governor J.B. Pritzker sent a letter demanding Trump return $1,700 to every family in Illinois. Other Democrats, like Pete Buttigieg and Gavin Newsom, made similar demands. Senate Democrats have introduced a bill that would pay each family $1,300 in seized tariff revenue.
So far, the Trump administration has refused to entertain the idea of returning the money.
Any focus on tariffs is good for Democrats. Here are the key numbers:
According to a brand-new Washington Post/ABC News poll, 64% of Americans — including 72% of independents — disapprove of Trump’s handling of tariffs. A Morning Consult poll conducted for the Council on Foreign Relations found that more than 65% said tariffs had made everyday items less affordable. And a Marquette University Law School poll found that a third of Republicans in January wanted the Court to strike down the tariffs.
The tariff question is going to hang over Trump’s State of the Union speech tonight, and that’s another problem for him. If the past is precedent, we can expect Trump to dig in on tariffs and spend a good chunk of his most high-profile speech defending his least popular policy position.
And that’s another gift for Democrats.
I fully expect Democrats to make this push a big part of their message going forward. Democrats want to focus on affordability, but it’s hard to break through with that message. Fighting to get Trump to return your tariff money is a great way to do it.
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I was at a meeting yesterday with the 2 Congressman that share my County. I suggested the following and then texted this to my US Senator. It's good to see other Democratic leaders thinking the same way. Note, I went "light" on the amount to make it more palatable, although the Republicans will not support any amount.
Trump Tariff reparations tax credit
Propose a refundable tax credit for every household with adjusted gross income below a specific amount (e.g., $250,000 filing jointly). Reports say that Trump's tariffs cost the average home about $1,000. Make the tax credit between $500 and $1,000.
Let Trump and the Republicans argue against the tax credit. The discussion right now is whether businesses can get back their tariff payments. But the analysis says that 95% of the tariff costs were passed on to consumers. The businesses are not returning customers' inflated costs to them, so why should they keep the money?
Tariffs are a Republican tax on the working class. Pound that message and propose a Tariff reparations tax credit.
If every American family receives a $1300 check during Trump's presidency, the checks will have Trump’s signature and he will announce that the money came from foreign countries because of the tariffs. People will vote for the thieves for the rest of their lives.