‘Prices will go up for consumers’: Trump’s tariffs may force one of America’s most affordable stores to raise prices
There is an economic sh*tstorm on the horizon, it is known as Hurricane Trump. According to a report from the ITEP, Trump’s tax plans alone could wreck the American economy. The organization’s forecast on Trump’s tariff plan isn’t looking much better. American consumers will suffer for it.
Under Trump’s new tax plan, the top five percent of American earners will be racking it in, while the rest of nation’s citizens foot the bill. The majority of the money will come from the lowest income earners, who will be taxed the most severely. Now that one of America’s most affordable stores is slated to raise its prices, the timing couldn’t be worse. Republicans against Trump took to X to bear the bad news. “We never want to raise our prices,” he wrote, citing the company’s model, “but there probably will be cases where prices will go up for consumers.”
While Trump has claimed that increased tariffs will bolster the American economy, experts are skeptical. And by “skeptical” I mean they’re battening down the hatches and prepping for “disaster”. Though Trump has promised that the tariffs will be paid by the countries they are imposed on and not America consumers, the majority of economists refute this claim.
While most foreign goods will see a tariff markup of 10 to 20 percent, Chinese made goods could see that figure rise to 60 to 100 percent. This is all part of the Trump administration’s greater effort to stoke the fires of trade war between the U.S. and China. Just like in real war, it’s the common citizen who will suffer the most.
This won’t be the first time that America citizens have been hurt by Trump tariffs. According to a report from the Tax Foundation, Trump’s tariffs created $80 billion worth of new taxes on the American people when he imposed them during his first term as president. Trump’s newest round of tariffs could raise consumer prices as much as 5.1% according to a Yale study. When combined the staggering cost of his multi-billion dollar “mass deportation” plan, economic experts at the Peterson Institute for International Economics predict that inflation could rise anywhere from 6% to 9.3%. By imposing larger tariffs than he did in his first term, consumers will likely see a rise in the cost over everything from electronics to children’s toys.
When it comes to raising prices, Walmart isn’t the only company likely to do so. Autozone CEO Philip Daniele recently told customers that the car parts company’s prices are expected to increase if Trump’s tariffs take effect. The shoe brand Steve Madden also intends to let customers foot the increased tariff bill. The Dollar Tree may soon have to rebrand itself as the Dollar Twenty-Five Tree if the tariffs go into effect. I wish I was joking, I’m not.
Is the U.S. economy itself on the chopping block? While experts are pessimistic, hope comes from an unexpected place: The Supreme Court. It is possible that the judiciary branch could limit Trump’s tariff plan in order to divert the economic End Times. The current Supreme Court has bestowed upon itself unparalleled veto power in recent years, using that power to tank the Biden Administration’s student loan forgiveness plan, which it deemed to be an executive overreach. While the decision sucked for college grads, it set a precedent that allows Supreme Court to intervene in economic policy. Let’s just hope that the Trump appointment justices don’t allow their loyalties to the president to distract them from helping those soon to be most affected by Trump’s tariffs: people like you and me.
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