Beef is at record highs. Power bills are climbing. Furniture is already up nearly 10% in some categories. And now Donald Trump wants to slap new tariffs on Hollywood and North Carolina furniture. Let’s be clear about what that means: a hidden tax on the American people.
This morning, Fox News reported that ground beef is up 13–14% year-over-year and steaks up 17%—numbers confirmed by USDA, which shows beef/veal prices +13.9% YoY with ground beef averaging over $6.25 a pound, the highest on record. Families already feel it every time they check out at the grocery store.
Meanwhile, utilities aren’t giving any relief: electricity is up 6.2% YoY, natural gas up nearly 14%, and experts say prices will keep rising through 2026 . Furniture and bedding? Already +4.7% YoY, with kitchen and dining sets up 9.5% . These are not luxuries—these are the basics of family life.
And into this fragile mix, Trump just announced new 100% tariffs on movies and TV made abroad and fresh tariffs on imported furniture (screenshots above). The promise? To “onshore jobs.” The reality? Prices will spike.
We’ve seen this movie before. In 2018, Trump’s tariffs on washers caused prices to jump 12% overnight—and dryers, which weren’t even tariffed, rose almost as much . Economists across the board concluded: consumers and businesses ate nearly all the costs. Tariffs didn’t rebuild the industries; they just made life more expensive.
Onshoring the Right Way
Here’s the truth: We do need to bring jobs home. America should be making more beef, more furniture, more power systems, more everything here. But the way to do it is investment, not punishment.
Domestic investment credits for factories and supply chains.
Buy American standards in federal procurement.
Workforce training to rebuild skills in places like North Carolina.
Permitting reform so companies can build here quickly.
That’s how you onshore. Not by taxing families at the checkout line.
The Big Picture
Families are already squeezed:
Beef at $6.25/lb and climbing.
Utilities up 6–14%.
Furniture up nearly 10%.
Gas still over $3/gallon.
Adding Trump’s new tariffs on top will raise costs on basics, not bring them down. This is a hidden tax dressed up as “America First,” and it hits working families hardest.
You don’t rebuild American industry by taxing American families at the checkout line. Onshoring is a building plan, not a border tax.
