Trump seems to have given up on trying to make groceries cheaper.

Remember when that was what the entire election was supposedly about?

Well, now he admits he won’t be lowering grocery prices after all. He told Time Magazine: "I'd like to bring them down. It's hard to bring things down once they're up. You know, it's very hard,"

Yes it will be hard, because of Trump’s economic plans. What are they, exactly?

Well first, Trump plans to slash the top corporate tax rate down to just 15 percent, which would result in the five largest grocery stores getting a collective $1.7 billion dollar tax cut. But, do you think they will pass those savings on to you? Think again. 

The year after Trump cut the corporate tax rate in his first term, the largest corporations spent a then-record $806 billion on stock buybacks — juicing their own share prices and lining the pockets of their executives and shareholders. Walmart, the nation’s largest grocer, has spent $43 billion on buybacks since 2018. If Trump is rewarding grocery stores and food distributors with more tax cuts, why wouldn’t they just line their pockets again?

Second, grocery prices will skyrocket thanks to Trump’s [proposed] 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada. That’s because our neighbors to the north and south are two of our biggest agricultural trading partners —accounting for $84 billion worth of food and beverage imports in 2023. And despite what Trump says, tariffs are not paid by other countries. They are paid by us at the checkout line.

Third, Trump’s appointee to head the Federal Trade Commission, Andrew Ferguson, has vowed to end the agency’s “war on mergers.” This will lead to less competition in a food industry that’s already dominated by just a few corporations. Research shows that markets with fewer competitors have higher prices — which means you’ll be paying even more for groceries. That’s why the Biden Administration sued to block the merger between mega-grocers Kroger and Albertsons. They won that battle, but big food corporations are licking their chops to gobble up the competition when the Trump Administration gives them the greenlight.

Fourth, Trump’s cruelest promise of all is deporting millions of immigrants, whose hard work is crucial to our food supply. 

Around 1.7 million undocumented people work across the food supply chain in America. Farms, dairies, ranches, and food processors all rely on undocumented workers. Experts agree that mass deportations will result in labor shortages. And what would that mean? Higher prices for consumers.

Let’s be clear: Trump never had any plan to bring down grocery prices and help working families. 

Because he doesn’t care about you — he cares about his corporate donors and billionaire buddies. He’s focused on making his rich friends even richer — and your life even harder.