{"id":1055266,"date":"2025-07-23T22:50:19","date_gmt":"2025-07-24T02:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1055266"},"modified":"2025-07-23T22:50:19","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T02:50:19","slug":"reality-check-prices-are-rising-and-working-families-are-paying-more-despite-admin-officials-delusionally-claiming-otherwise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/reality-check-prices-are-rising-and-working-families-are-paying-more-despite-admin-officials-delusionally-claiming-otherwise\/","title":{"rendered":"REALITY CHECK: Prices Are Rising and Working Families Are Paying More \u2014 Despite Admin Officials Delusionally Claiming Otherwise"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In response to Scott Bessent\u2019s out-of-touch comments dismissing the cost of Donald Trump\u2019s chaotic trade war, <\/em>DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDonald Trump promised to lower prices on Day One, yet over six months into his presidency, prices continue to skyrocket. Families are struggling to make ends meet, and parents are taking on debt to afford important necessities like school supplies, yet Trump\u2019s only plan is to double down on his reckless and chaotic trade war. It doesn\u2019t matter how many times Bessent \u2014 or any of the Trump administration\u2019s wildly out-of-touch clowns \u2014 go on TV and claim prices aren\u2019t rising, Americans are still feeling it every time they walk into a store.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

WATCH<\/strong><\/a>: Scott Bessent is trying to gaslight the American people, falsely claiming that Donald Trump\u2019s trade war isn\u2019t raising prices on working families.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reporter<\/a>: \u201cAre you confident that, even as no new tariffs go into place<\/strong> on August 1\u2014 on August 12th, that there will not be an effect that Americans are going to see when they go and buy a car, or Christmas goods, or toys, or dolls, or anything else?\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scott Bessent: \u201cWell I- I- I think what we\u2019ve seen so far is that the manufacturers have been eating it at the\u2013 a lot of\u2013 or the exporters have been taking a lot of the price \u2014 or the tariff adjustment. I think we\u2019re also seeing a lot of the retailers do it. A lot of the retailers\u2019 margins got very fat during COVID, so I think some of them are absorbing it. I was with the Amazon CEO last week, and he said, thus far, they\u2019re not seeing any price increases. And, thus far, we\u2019ve seen very good inflation numbers this year.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT CHECK: Amazon prices for essential goods are rising while other companies move to raise prices to keep up with Trump\u2019s tariffs. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wall Street Journal<\/a>: \u201cAfter Pledging to Keep Prices Low, Amazon Hiked Them on Hundreds of Essentials\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the five months since President Trump first announced sweeping tariffs, Amazon quietly raised prices on low-cost products such as deodorant, protein shakes and pet care items, a Wall Street Journal analysis of nearly 2,500 items found. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAmazon\u2019s price rose on 1,200 of its cheapest household goods\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

USA Today<\/a>: \u201c[I]n the three weeks since Trump\u2019s announced additional tariffs<\/strong> on what he dubbed Liberation Day (April 2), Amazon prices have risen 4.2% higher on 50 products<\/strong>, according to a sample conducted by equity research firm MoffettNathanson Research.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Axios<\/a>: \u201cSome 57% of companies were already experiencing a tariff-driven decline in gross margins<\/strong> as of May, per the KPMG Tariff Pulse Survey. \u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c77% of respondents said their companies are considering price increases of at least 5%<\/strong> in the next six months.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT CHECK: Trump\u2019s tariffs are also driving up the price of back-to-school supplies, \u201cstraining\u201d families\u2019 budgets, and forcing parents to take on debt to cover the cost of school supplies. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CNBC<\/a>: \u201cTrump tariffs, inflation have some parents worried about back-to-school shopping costs\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith inflation picking up, and President Donald Trump\u2019s new tariff rates threatening to drive prices even higher, some parents are worried about making ends meet.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRoughly 20% of back-to-school shoppers said buying supplies for the new year is straining their budgets,<\/strong> according to a new report by Bankrate, which polled more than 2,600 adults in June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA separate report, by Intuit Credit Karma, found that 39% of parents said they can\u2019t afford back-to-school shopping this year<\/strong>. Meanwhile, 44% said they plan to take on debt to cover the cost of school supplies, up from 34% in 2024.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACT CHECK: Inflation continues to skyrocket under Trump\u2019s unaffordable agenda. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ABC News<\/a>: \u201cInflation surged in June amid tariffs as Trump declared \u2018inflation is dead\u2019\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bloomberg<\/a>: \u201cThe latest report on US inflation was the clearest sign yet that tariffs are starting to boost costs of commonly imported consumer goods<\/strong>\u2026\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

POLLING: Americans overwhelmingly agree prices are rising \u2014 and that Trump isn\u2019t doing enough to lower them. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n