As 2025 draws to a close, Michigan families are facing a harsh reality: everyday goods cost significantly more than they did in January, while Congressmen John James and Tom Barrett voted to hand trillions in tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy and large corporations. According to the Consumer Price Index for food, prices for all food increased this year, while health care premiums are expected to break records. From groceries to doctors to holiday gifts, Michigan families paid the price for our representatives' priorities.
"Michigan families just lived through a year where John James and Tom Barrett voted to prioritize billionaires over their constituents at every turn, and as a result, our monthly budgets have paid the price," said Alex Bronson, owner of Blackout Paint. "Holiday shoppers paid over $100 more on average because of tariffs that Congress enabled. Toys are up to 20% more expensive. Electronics cost families almost another $200. Christmas trees, decorations, clothing, food, housing, medicine—everything costs more. Meanwhile, James and Barrett voted for tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefited people that can afford everything we can’t. They cut food assistance for Michiganders and slashed Medicaid for our vulnerable just to pay for those billionaire tax breaks. That's not representation—that's a betrayal of your fellow human beings who are struggling to make ends meet."
The food insecurity crisis has only worsened under the policies championed by James and Barrett. The recent SNAP cuts they voted for—the largest in American history—will impact over 100,000 Michiganders. In Barrett's own district, over 30,000 households depend on SNAP, more than almost any other Republican district in the country.
Yet the Republican Tax Law was supported by both James and Barrett when it passed this summer, and included the largest cuts to SNAP in history and massive reductions to Medicaid—all to finance tax breaks for those who need them least. Now, House Republicans are considering a discharge petition that would force leadership to take a vote on extending ACA tax credits that help make health care more affordable. Congressman James and Barrett should be a part of that effort, and help extend the ACA tax credits. As families face higher costs heading into 2026, neither congressman has offered relief or accountability yet, it is time.
