Every month, families across the country sit down and look at their budgets. And every month, it seems like things are costing just a little bit more. This election has been centered around those concerns and affordability, which is on the forefront of most Americans' minds as we head into November.
According to recent polling, 88 percent of Americans agree that the government should help families by producing more American energy, increasing competition, and letting working families keep more of what they earn. Polling also showed that 84 percent of registered voters believe inflation is driven by federal government spending, and that we can lower inflation through a reduction in spending and deficits, and that 74 percent think cutting taxes is the best way to handle increasing costs by allowing workers to keep more of the money they earn.
This shows that affordability is not a single-policy problem. Instead, myriad factors — taxes, inflation, energy, competition, and government spending — all impact household budgets in different ways.
July's Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 3.4 percent year over year, with food up three percent and energy up 14.7 percent. While this is a vast improvement from the Biden-era inflation and shows that inflation is not accelerating everywhere, a truth remains: price levels remain painful for voters, even as the rate of increase moderates.
We see it at the grocery store, where the staples we buy every week cost more and our grocery budget doesn't go as far as it once did, and we see it when we open our utility bills and see that heating, cooling, and powering our homes costs a little bit more.
The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) tied the cost-of-living problem to spending, domestic production, and the regulatory environment back in 2022. It specifically points to the $1.9 trillion Biden-era American Rescue Plan as a pivotal point in inflation. When the economy reopened post-COVID, prices started rising with inflation from June 2020 to February 2021, averaging 32 basis points per month. After the American Rescue Plan was signed into law in March 2021, monthly inflation doubled to 64 basis points. AFPI also noted that the war in Ukraine, which began in February 2022, was not a driving factor; prices had risen 7.9 percent in the year ending in February 2022. The Biden administration's policy of abandoning American energy independence contributed to rising prices, too. Gas prices were up 43.6 percent in the year ending in May 2022, and U.S. production of oil fell from 12.8 million barrels per day in February 2020 to 11.3 million in February 2022. Meanwhile, the Biden administration proposed $45 billion in higher taxes on the energy sector while increasing regulatory burdens.
Recommended
When it comes to taxes, the Senate Finance Committee notices that the expiration/reversal of the 2017 Trump tax cuts would mean roughly an estimated $1,700 average tax increase for a family of four. This would include more than $2.6 trillion in tax hikes for households earning less than $400,000 per year, a slashing of the child tax credit by half for millions of American families, and 43 percent tax hikes for small business owners, who would also see their death tax exemption cut in half. President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill permanently extended those 2017 tax cuts and added provisions for no taxes on tips, no taxes on overtime, and no taxes on Social Security. In a state like Wisconsin, the One Big Beautiful Bill translates to real wage increases between $3,500 and $8,400, and an increase in take home pay ranging between $7,100 and $10,100. More than 460,000 small business owners saw a permanent 20 percent reduction in taxes, and 110,000 jobs were saved.
Competition is another factor leading to price increases. More competition drives down prices as businesses compete for hardworking Americans' dollars. This year, the Justice Department reached a settlement with the meat industry, ending meat processors' unfair advantage in negotiations with meat buyers. The government claimed that Agri Stats Inc. was engaged in unlawful information sharing of price, output, and costs among competing meat processors — something that suppressed competition and increased prices. The settlement would help lower food costs, "undo decades of distorted competition in the broiler chicken market, and ensure that the pork and turkey markets remain free from these anticompetitive practices."
We can draw a clear contrast between the two political parties. Republicans delivered on the One Big Beautiful Bill, which has made the 2017 Trump tax cuts permanent and eliminated tax on tips, overtime, and Social Security. Prescription drug prices are at 60-year lows, and the DOJ ended distorted competition in the meat industry. The burdensome regulatory environment has come to an end, and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said the war on fossil fuels is over under the Trump administration. Things are heading in the right direction.
But Democrats, on the other hand, want to return to the days of massive spending, out-of-control inflation, and heavy regulations. They're vowing to repeal the Working Families Tax Cuts, to enact the radical Green New Deal that would make gas and energy prices skyrocket, expand welfare programs, and are pushing Medicare for All which would drive up taxes, decrease competition, and damage the economy.
While Washington talks about ideology, voters are talking about what it costs to live. There are multiple factors driving up costs, including competition, energy production, spending, and tax rates, but all of them come together for voters in the same household budget. And the bottom line is this: voters are asking Washington to make the economy work for them, and one party is doing that: the Republicans.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
Help Townhall continue to report on the Democrats’ radicalism and inform voters as our nation faces a crossroads. Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.