Tariffs, Tax Cuts, and Credit Downgrades Walk Into a Bar… and Punch the Middle Class in the Face

In case you’ve been too busy paying $6.79 for a bag of grapes to notice, the U.S. economy is doing that hilarious little trick again where the numbers look shiny—but somehow your wallet feels emptier than your hope on tax day. And yes, I have thoughts.

You know, just the usual stuff: tax cuts for the rich disguised as help for “families,” a downgraded credit rating because we’re racking up debt like we’re playing Monopoly with someone else’s mortgage, tariffs on everything but common sense, and a birth rate that’s lower than Congress’s approval rating. Totally unrelated, right?

Wrong. It’s all connected. Pour yourself a cheap coffee (because Starbucks is a luxury now) and let’s take this chaotic stroll together.

Let’s Start with the Tax Cuts (a.k.a. the Glittery Bait on the Trap).

The latest budget bill is being paraded around like a shiny new tricycle: “Look, Ma! We’re helping families!” And sure, if you squint hard enough and tilt your head to the left, it looks helpful.

There’s a bump in the child tax credit, a teensy bit more on the standard deduction, and no tax on tips or overtime—finally, a break for the people doing real work. How generous! But wait… plot twist!

Almost all of this disappears by 2028. Yep. The tax fairy giveth, then yeeteth it right off a fiscal cliff.

It’s called a “tax cliff.” Because nothing says “stable financial future” like a legislative version of Wile E. Coyote running off a ledge and realizing too late he’s not standing on anything.

And speaking of cliffs, let’s talk about who’s floating on a golden parachute while the rest of us splatter. Spoiler: It ain’t us. While our “relief” is temporary, the tax advantages for the wealthy often just begin in those years. Like fine wine and presidential scandals, their benefits age beautifully.

So how do we “pay” for these magical tax cuts?

Oh, easy. We just cut programs that you rely on. Medicaid? SNAP? School lunch programs? Sorry, kiddos—tighten that belt. Those fresh tax breaks for the yacht crowd aren’t going to fund themselves.

Even more laughable: this bill doesn’t actually cut spending. No no. It increases spending. So let me say that louder for the people in the back: They’re giving out tax cuts and spending more—while pretending to be fiscally responsible.

How do they manage this dark wizardry? By shifting the burden off corporations and the wealthy and onto—you guessed it—the middle and working class. We’re the national piggy bank now. Oink, oink.

And yes, I understand the pull of short-term relief. I, too, have stared at a bank account and prioritized groceries over gas over meds like I was playing a reverse lottery.

But trading long-term stability for a temporary break is like refinancing your house to buy a scratch-off. You might feel good for a second. Until you’re bankrupt and holding a worthless ticket.

Credit Downgrade: Because Who Needs a Good Reputation Anyway?

Enter: Moody’s, the economic version of your high school GPA. They’re one of the Big Three credit rating agencies, and they just flunked us from an A+ to an AA+. Not failing exactly… just concerningly mediocre.

Why? Because the U.S. is basically maxing out every credit card it has, with zero plan to pay the bill.

Every year, we run a deficit. Every year, we borrow. That’s not new. But the problem is: our government has all the financial foresight of a toddler in a candy aisle.

And when we get downgraded? Our borrowing costs go up. Which means…

Higher interest payments from Uncle Sam

Which get passed to banks

Who pass it on to you

Congrats! Your mortgage, car loan, and credit card debt just got more expensive—so you can help finance the government’s inability to budget like an adult.

And while we pay more on everything from diapers to debt, federal money dries up for little things like infrastructure, schools, and disaster relief. But don’t worry—we’ll still find room for military flyovers at sporting events.

Now Playing: The Tariff Tango

Tariffs are the policy version of a bad ex. You keep thinking they’re gone, but then they show up again, louder and more expensive.

Trump’s back with his Greatest Hits album: Tariffs That Tank the Economy, Volume II. We’re talking tariffs so high they’re flirting with 1930s levels—yes, that’s pre-World War II logic we’re using. What could go wrong?

Let’s be clear: tariffs are taxes. They’re just sneakier. Corporations don’t pay them out of kindness. They pass the cost along to consumers. You feel it at Target, Kroger, and the gas pump. Even Walmart—Walmart!—tried to warn us. When they say prices will go up, you listen.

But wait, it gets dumber. Countries are now using “trans-shipping,” which is code for “slap a new label on it and pretend it’s from somewhere else.” The goods still come in, they’re just sneakier and pricier.

And remember that hiring freeze in the federal government? That means fewer people to enforce tariff laws. So we’re losing money and watching loopholes multiply like rabbits in springtime.

This is why “inflation” hasn’t “cooled.” You’re still hemorrhaging money at checkout because tariffs inflate everything. It’s economic sabotage disguised as patriotism.

The Birth Rate Is Tanking—And It’s Not Because We Hate Babies

Now here’s the real kicker: all this financial chaos is making people go, “Yeah, maybe not the best time to bring a baby into the burning house.”

We’re not having fewer kids because we forgot how. We’re not anti-family. We’re anti-drowning-in-debt-while-trying-to-buy-formula.

Wages are flat. Childcare costs more than rent. Parental leave is a joke. Health insurance is roulette. And now we’re slashing the very programs that help keep families afloat?

That’s not a family-first policy. That’s a “good luck, sucker” policy.

You can’t claim to be “pro-life” and gut every program that supports the actual living. You want people to start families? Make it possible to raise one without a GoFundMe.

Tariffs, tax cliffs, a downgraded national credit score—this isn’t some macroeconomic abstraction. This is why your cousin can’t afford daycare. This is why you didn’t go on vacation. This is why someone is debating a second child like it’s a NASA mission.

So… What Do We Do? Because Crying Feels Like a Full-Time Job Now.

We can’t fix everything, but we can stop playing dead. Here are five levers still attached to the control panel:

1. Know Your Local & State Budgets.

Medicaid, education, housing—they’re run locally. Even when the feds fail us, the state can pick up the slack. Show up. Email. Ask why your property taxes went up while your school’s ceiling is literally leaking.

2. Demand Real Family Policy.

“Pro-family” is meaningless without support for paid leave, affordable childcare, maternal health, housing, and actual wages you can live on. Ask for receipts. If your rep can’t answer, assume their plan is “vibes and prayers.”

3. Vote. In. The. Primaries.

You don’t get a better November unless you show up in May, June, or August. Primary turnout is abysmal. That’s when we choose who gets to be on the November menu. Don’t wait until then to realize all the options suck.

4. Talk About It. Loudly.

At dinner. Online. In the carpool lane. Tariffs and deficits aren’t “boring policy stuff”—they’re the reason you had to put groceries on a credit card.

5. Get Loud Between Elections.

Silence is interpreted as agreement. Email your reps. Leave voicemails. Support watchdogs. Don’t let them hide behind the noise. If they’re screwing you over, at least make them sweat.

Bottom line? We don’t need a PhD in economics to realize the math isn’t mathing. The bills are getting higher, the help is getting smaller, and the policies are more about politics than people.

Speak up. Show up. Vote like your groceries depend on it.

Because they do.

Julie Bolejack, MBA