Op-ed by Summer Lane | Photo: Alamy
This Thanksgiving, the price of serving up a delicious spread of food during the holidays is set to strain the wallets of every hardworking American citizen. Joe Biden’s failing policies, skyrocketing inflation, and hopelessly entangled supply chain issues have plagued the nation for almost two years since he took office, leaving citizens feeling sentimental about the days of Trump’s America First policies.
In 2022, gathering around the table for a holiday dinner is beginning to appear farther and farther out of reach for the average American family.
Holiday food
It’s no secret that prices have risen catastrophically since Joe Biden stepped into the Oval Office. According to the U.S. Inflation Calculator, the annual inflation rate for the U.S. is 7.7 percent for the 12 months ending in October, having risen 8.2 percent annually. Arguably, inflationary pressure feels a lot worse than that, and President Trump himself cautioned Americans last week at Mar-a-Lago that “economic security is national security.”
MAGA War Room also shared some shocking statistics about everyone’s favorite holiday meal on Twitter this week: Turkey.
They stated, “The average cost of a 16-pound turkey is $28.96 this year.” In 2020, “a 16-pound bird only cost $19.39 – nearly $10 cheaper than now. That’s a 49 percent rise in price since President Trump left office.”
Trump also quipped last week, “Good luck getting a turkey for Thanksgiving. Number one, you won’t get it and if you do, you’re going to pay three to four times more than you paid last year.”
In fact, the American Farm Bureau reported that the price of a normal Thanksgiving dinner has risen 20 percent since last year, per Fox News.
That’s not exactly something to be thankful for.
Airfare
Hopping from state to state on a plane has become an increasingly expensive endeavor. According to Hopper Media, an estimated 70 percent of Americans are set to travel for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season, and prices are shooting up out of sight. Per Hopper: “This year Hopper expects most travelers will pay $350 per ticket for a good deal domestic Thanksgiving flight. Airfares will be 22% higher than in 2019, and 43% higher than last year.”
Their report also noted that the average price per ticket on international airfare for Thanksgiving was around $795, which they said was “up 25 percent compared to 2019 and up 41 percent compared to last year.”
Gas prices
Pain at the pump is real. Under Joe Biden and the radical Democrats, gas prices have risen astronomically, increasingly burdening everyday Americans with yet another staggering cost. Per Breitbart, GasBuddy projected a national average of $3.68 per gallon on Thanksgiving Day, which is roughly 30 percent higher than it was in 2021.
Earlier this year, RSBN reported that gas prices had doubled under Joe Biden’s leadership, jumping to a catastrophic nationwide average cost per gallon of $4.81 over the summer, according to the AAA National Average report. The same report also noted that in January 2021, just after Trump left office, the national average per gallon was only $2.39.
According to Breitbart, gas prices peaked nationwide at $5.00 per gallon in June. Thanks to Biden’s weak energy policies, holiday traveling will likely drive gas prices up again.
Christmas gifts and Christmas trees
Black Friday famously signals the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, but things are looking a bit different this year. According to a report from the Hartford Courant, even Christmas trees are likely to cost up to 20 percent more than last year, which some attribute to massive demand and alleged “overselling” during two pandemic years in a row. Like everything else, even the beloved Christmas tree has risen in price.
The Washington Post further reported that customers in 2022 are shopping much more conservatively, strategically hunting for lower prices and good deals in light of destructive inflationary pressures. Per their report, a recent survey from Alvarez & Marsal revealed that even 45 percent of “affluent” Americans are concerned about the expensive price tags on products these days.
Have yourself an inflationary little Christmas
This year, Americans are no doubt longing to return to common-sense, America First policies that kept consumer prices low and the traditional turkey on the table for the whole family to enjoy.
“America’s golden age is just ahead,” Trump promised Americans in his 2024 campaign announcement speech last week.
With Biden at the helm, the 2022 holiday season will be harsher than most, but Americans can, at the very least, cling to the hope of a brighter future now that Trump is poised to trek back toward the White House in 2024.