Copyright newsweek
Originally a staple of Newsweek‘s print edition, Conventional Wisdom used arrows to track whose stock was rising or falling in the political circus. We’re reviving it in the digital age because the problem it lampooned—hyperbole and partisan certainty masquerading as insight—has only intensified. CW assigns arrows—up, down, or sideways—to the figures and forces shaping current events. The arrows don’t predict the future or claim special insight. They capture the prevailing winds of the moment, uncluttered by tribal howling. In an era when partisan media reinforces rather than questions assumptions, CW operates from the center—skeptical of left and right alike, committed to puncturing inflated reputations and recognizing overlooked truths. In this edition, CW looks at the Supreme Court weighing Donald Trump’s tariffs. Scott Bessent ⬇ The Treasury Secretary wanted a “ringside seat” to watch the tariff oral arguments. Ended up with a front-row view of Trump-appointed justices eviscerating his boss’s legal theory. His “trillion-dollar number” for tariff revenues just became a wish. Lee Jae Myung ⬇ The South Korean leader pulled out all the stops to get Trump to drop tariffs from 25 percent to 15 percent. A week later, a skeptical Supreme Court might toss them out entirely. He could’ve kept the gold crown. American Consumers ⬅➡ If the Court strikes down tariffs, importers will get the refunds, not the people who paid $16 for a bag of Halloween candy. And if Trump reimposes tariffs via Section 232, prices stay high anyway. This money tree is more like a cactus. Hedge Funds ⬆ Wall Street brokered trades letting hedge funds buy tariff refund rights at 20-40 cents on the dollar. An investor who ponied up $100 million could be looking at a $400 million payday. Who knew constitutional law could be such a money-making racket? Rick Woldenberg ⬆ The educational toy CEO is paying millions in legal fees to challenge the tariffs, not corporate giants like Walmart and GM that stand to benefit most if he wins. When no one in the Fortune 500 wants to risk offending Trump, leave it to Spike the Fine Motor Hedgehog to take care of business. ‘A Tax on Another Country’ ⬇ Senate Leader Chuck Schumer: “This is a huge tax on American families.” Justice Sotomayor: “They’re generating revenue from American citizens.” The Court agrees: Liberation Day liberated American wallets of $195 billion.
