A former Trump administration official aimed a spotlight on seemingly “exploitative” practices of retailers padding their profits under the guise of tariffs.
While an increasing number of critics have come forward to acknowledge the positive results of President Donald Trump’s tariff strategies, some retailers appear to be duping consumers on the increased price of goods. Referencing a report from the Federal Reserve of New York, former Department of Homeland Security acting Secretary Chad Wolf pulled back the curtain on businesses “using tariffs as a convenient scapegoat to raise prices …”
“Tariffs are designed to level the playing field, incentivize domestic production, counter predatory trade practices — especially from the Chinese Communist Party — and put America First,” asserted Wolf in an op-ed for Fox News. “Tariffs protect long-term American interests, especially in vital industries like technology and manufacturing.”
“Yet, many corporations are using tariffs as a convenient scapegoat to raise prices across the board, even on products not impacted by new trade policies,” he went on as he referenced the Federal Reserve report that determined at least three-quarters of businesses have been passing the burden of tariffs onto consumers, including by increasing prices on non-tariffed items.
“This is not only wrong, it’s exploitative,” Wolf insisted. “We all know many of these large retailers are sitting on comfortable, even expanded, profit margins because of the price hikes from COVID-19 that never came down. But it’s not enough for them. They want to fleece the American consumer and blame it on President Trump’s America First agenda.”
The official from Trump’s first administration proceeded to cite former Walmart CEO Bill Simon who told CNBC’s “Fast Money” in May of his old company, “If you look down deep and dig into the details of their earnings release today, you know this quarter they grew their gross profit margin in the US business 25 basis points. So, they’re expanding their margin.”
“They also reported their general merchandise categories were flattish because they had mid-single digit price deflation. So all that product that has the tariffs on it, they reported last quarter actually went down in price,” detailed Simon. “That sort of gives them room in my view to manage any tariff impact that they would have.”
Wolf specified, “Despite Simon’s admission, Walmart has already issued price hikes under the guise of tariff costs.”
In addition to the negative impact on the buying power of consumers, he made clear the political impact as he argued the practice, “creates the false impression that Trump administration policies are causing this, when in reality, many of these pricing decisions are being driven by corporate boards more concerned with shareholder satisfaction than consumer welfare.”
Pointing out that many of the businesses benefited from outsourcing to China, Wolf argued, “They should now bear the burden of the environment they helped create, and Americans agree.”
Per a poll from the Protecting America Initiative, of which Wolf is listed as a senior advisor alongside Trump’s special presidential envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell, consumers agreed with the president that retailers should “EAT THE TARIFFS,” by a two-to-one margin. Further, 54% agreed that they don’t trust retailers to reduce prices if tariffs are lifted.
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Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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