(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Trump is refunding tariffs. You won’t see a dime. [1] ['Max Burns'] Date: 2026-07-17 When the Supreme Court ruled against President Donald Trump’s emergency tariffs in February, Democrats praised it as a victory for price-gouged consumers. But in reality, Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and the nation’s most powerful hedge funds have exploited the court’s ruling to enrich megacorporations—and themselves. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick AP On Tuesday, the White House announced $49 billion in tariff refunds mandated by the court’s ruling, but consumers who paid higher prices for everything from groceries to medication won’t see a penny of it. Instead, the Commerce Department is making payments directly to the corporations that already profited from overcharging Americans. And don’t expect them to pass along their financial windfall in the form of lower prices at the register. Wall Street isn’t missing out on the steady stream of corporate welfare either. Some of the largest hedge funds in the United States spent the uncertain days after the court’s ruling buying the rights to tariff refunds from distressed retailers, often for as little as 20 to 30 cents on the dollar. Few financial firms stand to profit from tariff refunds as much as Cantor Fitzgerald, the Wall Street giant previously led by Lutnick and now overseen by his sons, Brandon and Kyle Lutnick. The Lutnicks were so far ahead of their competitors that Cantor Fitzgerald was buying tariff refund rights even before it was clear that Trump’s tariffs would be struck down. Related | Trump still doesn’t grasp the concept of groceries The unusually mouthy Lutnick has been uncharacteristically silent about his sons’ role in the tariff refund trades, which Cantor Fitzgerald estimates could be worth as much as several million dollars each. But Lutnick’s silence hasn’t stopped congressional Democrats from demanding federal investigations. Earlier this year, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland demanded records from the Lutnicks related to their involvement in buying tariff refund rights. Lutnick ignored that demand, but if Democrats recapture Congress in the midterms, Lutnick will find it much more difficult to avoid the subpoenas and public hearings. President Donald Trump announces more tariffs in April 2025. AP The White House will face an equally tough time, with Sens. Ron Wyden of Oregon and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts launching their own investigation into whether hedge funds targeted small businesses by offering to buy their tariff rebate rights at reduced prices. Commerce officials have so far refused to cooperate with Senate Democrats’ multiple requests for documents and on-the-record testimony. “Even after being ordered by a court, the Administration is still searching for any way to avoid paying Americans the refunds that they are owed, and American consumers that ultimately paid for these tariffs have no clue whether they will ever see a single cent,” Warren said in a statement in June. Trump’s tariff chaos is another glaring example of the unethical alliance between the White House and the nation’s largest businesses, even when it directly harms regular Americans and the economy. Trump’s $49 billion in tariff refunds is more than twice the $23.6 billion his administration collected in tariffs in June, and that isn’t even counting roughly $166 billion in additional tariffs that are also eligible for refunds. In other words, Trump’s tariff ledger is actually losing the United States money. June’s tariff refunds drove the nation’s budget deficit to more than $120 billion, boosting the cost of federal borrowing and reducing the money available for critical infrastructure and social programs. That’s a world apart from last year’s State of the Union address, where Trump promised that his tariffs would be a key driver in balancing the federal budget and eliminating the deficit. Now the nation’s finances are in worse shape than ever, tariff refunds show no sign of slowing, and the only people coming out ahead are politically connected hedge funds and corporate titans. Jack Ohman/Tribune Content Agency So much for draining the swamp. Meanwhile, U.S. consumers who bore the brunt of Trump’s tariffs are left to fend for themselves. House Republicans have rejected Democratic efforts to pass legislation guaranteeing tariff refunds return to the consumers who paid them. In April, 15 Democrats urged retailers to pass their tariff rebates on to cash-strapped consumers—Republicans refused to support that effort too. Instead, GOP lawmakers are ensuring companies profit from both sides of Trump’s tariff chaos: first from price gouging shoppers and later by pocketing tariff refunds. With the upcoming July tariff refunds expected to blow another hole in the country’s budget, the Trump administration is hoping that voters won’t notice that cronies like Lutnick are picking their pockets—twice. If Democrats want to get serious about fighting for working families, they can start by ensuring that every U.S. consumer knows who’s getting rich from manipulating Trump’s tariff refunds. It sure isn’t Main Street. 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