One Year After “Liberation Day,” Trump’s Tariffs Drive Up Prices While Corporations Cash In

One Year After “Liberation Day,” Trump’s Tariffs Drive Up Prices While Corporations Cash In

Working families shoulder the burden of on-again, off-again tariffs while corporations seize the moment to raise prices

President Trump promised to lower costs for American families and, exactly one year ago, vowed that his sweeping and chaotic tariff policy would make Americans “good and wealthy.” Not only has the president failed to deliver on his promises, he has driven the economy over a cliff and robbed thousands of dollars from working families.

Prices on everything from groceries to clothes to holiday celebrations have skyrocketed in the year since Trump’s “Liberation Day,” and in the ensuing confusion, corporate executives have taken advantage of widespread market disruptions to hike prices on consumers.

One year on, working families see “Liberation Day” for what it really was: another destructive Trump policy that raised costs when Americans asked for relief.

Groundwork’s Executive Director, Lindsay Owens, shared the following statement:

“On Liberation Day, President Trump promised his tariffs would put money back in our pockets and revive domestic manufacturing. One year later, the only thing he’s liberated Americans from is their wallets. Worse, instead of ushering in a manufacturing Renaissance, we’re staring down a potential recession. Working families deserve more than economic chaos and empty promises.”

Background: 

Trump’s tariffs are driving up grocery prices on working families.

• The average American family paid an additional $310 for groceries during Trump’s first year in office than in 2024 as farmers and producers grappled with increased production costs and import expenses due to tariff instability.

• Working families, who spend a larger portion of their budgets on groceries and essentials than their wealthier counterparts, are bearing the brunt of price hikes at the grocery store.

Celebrations and holidays are more expensive across the board thanks to tariff chaos.

• Last fall as students went back to school, the average family paid up to 40 percent more on essential school supplies and over $160 more to pack lunch boxes than the previous year.

• Halloween 2025 was spookier than ever as prices for candy soared four times higher than overall inflation thanks to tariffs on cocoa and other confectionary essentials.

• Working families were not grateful for Trump’s Thanksgiving price hikes, as the price of the average Turkey Day plate was up 10% and the price of certain favorites rose over 60%.

• Holiday cheer was in short supply as Americans grappled with an eye-watering 26% jump in gift prices last December. Even Scrooge would call foul on Trump’s price increases.

• Consumers didn’t feel the love this Valentine’s Day with prices for holiday staples like chocolate and flowers up over 15% on average.

Corporations are hiding behind Trump’s erratic tariffs to hike prices on consumers.

• Corporate executives proudly bragged that they were raising prices on unsuspecting consumers while publicly blaming pricing changes on tariffs in 2025 and 2026 earnings calls.

• “Even if we have metals that weren’t impacted directly by tariffs, the indirect effect of tariffs is that it gives steel producers and the mills and other fabricators … great cover for increased pricing in some cases.” – Aaron P. Jagdfeld, CEO of Generac Power Systems, 4/30/2025

• “We certainly welcome a reduction in the Chinese tariffs, but we’ll be announcing a price increase here regardless of any changes of the Chinese tariffs over the next week or two to go into effect in June.” – Thomas Robertson, COO and CFO of Rocky Brands, 4/29/2025

• “We said pretty consistently, we feel really good about how we’ve navigated through the tariff environment…[W]e’ve had to take some modest price increases in certain categories…And up to this point, we’ve had success in passing our price on to customers in those categories.” – Floor & Decor Executive, 2/19/2026

• “So when we look at our pricing plans, of course, we’ve been through a dynamic period when you look at…the cost side of the equation, it’s been headlined by tariffs, tariffs and tariffs in that dynamic environment…So eventually, you have to pass some through in price…we’ve done that.” – John Pfeifer, Oshkosh President, CEO and Director, 1/29/2026

• “For the remaining tariff-related impact, we utilized advanced analytics, data science and deep customer and consumer insights to execute targeted and disciplined pricing actions across our portfolio…Notably, we undertook most of our incremental tariff pricing actions early in 2025, earlier than many competitors…We covered tariff costs on a dollar-for-dollar basis with strategic pricing actions…” – Fortune Brands Executive, 2/12/2026

• “We have implemented a price increase of $3,500 per bus for all orders received after November 18, 2025, to cover for new standard safety features, for example, industry-first driver airbag and the expected variable cost increases, and we continue to execute on our margin-neutral tariff strategy.” – Blue Bird CFO Razvan Radulescu, 11/24/2025

Americans have lost faith in Trump’s handling of the economy and want their money back.

• Following the Supreme Court’s decision that ruled Trump’s tariffs illegal, polling from Groundwork and Data for Progress found that an overwhelming majority of voters – including 43% of Republicans – want Trump to issue refunds directly to the American people.

• Only 19% of respondents approved of Trump’s chaotic blanket tariff strategy.

• Nearly two-thirds (65%) of voters say Trump’s illegal tariffs are responsible for higher prices.

• While dozens of companies have filed suit to claim tariff reimbursements, most Americans (72%) do not trust them to lower costs or pass the refunds on to consumers, according to the poll.

• Recent Reuters/Ipsos polling shows that only 36% of Americans approve of Trump’s performance, a new low in his second term in office.

• A measly 25% of respondents approve of Trump’s handling of the cost of living crisis.

• Only 29% approve of Trump’s handling of the economy overall, a new low across both of his terms in the White House and lower than any economic approval level of President Joe Biden.