Welcome to You’re Probably Getting Screwed, a weekly newsletter and video series from J.D. Scholten and Justin Stofferahn about the Second Gilded Age and the ways economic concentration is putting politics and profits over working people.

You walk into Walmart, grab a winter coat made in China, a set of tools from Taiwan, and toys from Vietnam. You check out—and the prices are higher than they were six months ago. Not because the products improved. Not because workers got paid more. But because of Trump’s tariffs, a policy sold as “standing up to China” that’s really just a tax on you.

Here’s the truth politicians don’t like to admit: tariffs aren’t paid by China. They aren’t paid by corporations. They’re paid by consumers—every time you swipe your card. With tariffs driving up prices on everything from groceries to electronics, there’s never been a better moment to understand what’s actually happening—and to push back by shopping local.

Tariffs Are Taxes on Regular People

A tariff is just a tax on imported goods. When Trump slaps a 25% tariff on Chinese products, American importers pay that tax—and they pass the cost directly to you. That $50 winter coat becomes $62.50. Your washing machine, phone, and tools all get more expensive, and your paycheck doesn’t stretch as far.

Trump loves tariffs because they sound tough while avoiding accountability. He talks a big game but the reality is simple: consumers pay more, and corporations maintain their margins by passing costs down the line. It’s a shell game dressed up as economic patriotism.

This isn’t about defending China or opposing trade outright. It’s about recognizing that taxing imports without building domestic alternatives just makes regular people poorer. Trump’s tariffs haven’t revived manufacturing in rural America—they’ve raised grocery bills and squeezed household budgets.

Who Actually Wins? Big Corporations.

The real winners are the largest corporations—Walmart, Amazon, Target—companies with massive supply chains and leverage. They can shift sourcing, negotiate bulk deals, and absorb shocks far better than small businesses. When prices rise, they pass the cost to you and keep moving.

Local businesses don’t have that luxury. Your neighborhood hardware store pays the same tariffs but can’t pivot overnight or bully suppliers. They get squeezed while the big players consolidate more power.

That’s the scam of modern economic policy: sell a populist message while enacting policies that concentrate wealth and market power even further. Tariffs were supposed to protect American industry. Instead, they’re protecting corporate dominance while small businesses and consumers foot the bill.

Why Shopping Local Matters Right Now

This is where you still have power. Every dollar you spend is a choice about the economy you want.

When you shop local, your money stays in the community. The business owner lives there, hires locally, pays local taxes, and sponsors your kid’s team. When you shop at big box stores, that money gets extracted to corporate headquarters, enriching executives and shareholders far removed from your town.

This Isn’t Nostalgia. It’s Power.

Critics say shopping local is sentimental nonsense and that big corporations are simply more “efficient.” But this isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about power.

A handful of corporations now control what you buy, where you buy it, and how much you pay. They’ve crushed competition, lobbied for favorable policies, and built fragile supply chains so consolidated that any disruption—tariffs, pandemics, strikes—hits your wallet immediately.

Shopping local rebuilds alternatives. It creates resilience. It gives you options when corporate systems fail you.

And local business owners understand this better than anyone. They’re getting squeezed by the same monopolies you are. They’re natural allies in the fight for an economy that works for working people, not just CEOs and shareholders.

What You Can Do

Shopping local doesn’t mean never setting foot in a big box store. It means being intentional. Buy groceries at a local co-op or farmer’s market when you can. Visit the local hardware store. Support independent restaurants. Buy gifts from local artisans instead of Amazon.

Yes, it can cost a little more—but so does living in a hollowed-out community where every business is owned elsewhere and good jobs disappear. And with tariffs driving prices up everywhere, the gap is shrinking anyway. That $62.50 Walmart coat might have a similar one for $70 at the local shop—and that extra few dollars buys quality, community, and economic resilience.

The Bottom Line

Trump’s tariffs aren’t protecting us. They’re taxing American consumers while corporate power grows stronger. You’re paying more, getting less, and watching local economies weaken.

But you’re not powerless. Every time you choose local, you’re voting for an economy where wealth circulates instead of being extracted—where small businesses compete and communities survive.

Shop local. Not because it’s nostalgic—but because it’s economic self-defense.

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YOU’RE PROBABLY (ALSO) GETTING SCREWED BY:

Price Discrimination

In January, one of the final acts under former Chair Lina Khan, the FTC brought a lawsuit against PepsiCo for violating the Robinson-Patman Act (RPA). The RPA prohibits price discrimination, which is the practice of charging retailers different prices for the same good. Unfortunately, Trump-appointed Chair Andrew Ferguson claimed that Khan had rushed the lawsuit in a partisan fashion and dismissed the case and the timing of that dismissal also meant the full complaint by the FTC was sealed.

Well thanks to a lawsuit by the Institute for Local Self Reliance, a judge last week ordered the complaint be unsealed and it shows how Walmart and Pepsi worked together to jack up your grocery bill. Walmart extracted deals from Pepsi, but then also used Pepsi as a “retail price cop” to monitor prices across Walmart’s competitors. When a competitor’s prices got too close to Walmart, Pepsi would raise them. So while the president calls affordability a hoax, his FTC dropped a case that could have made a big impact on people’s grocery bill.

Amazon

Years ago the Institute for Local Self Reliance warned that local governments were increasingly turning to Amazon for procurement and it had the potential of increasing costs on taxpayers. ILSR was right, they recently produced an investigation that estimates cities, counties and school districts spent $2.2 billion in 2023 purchasing goods on Amazon. As you can see in the chart below, Amazon’s “dynamic pricing” lets it covertly raise prices and inflate costs for governments. You can find the full report here.

A Pro-Tech FTC

Some dark meme humor courtesy of Matt Stoller.

Private Equity

Katherine Van Dyck of the American Economic LIberties Project recently testified to Congress on private equity’s alarming and growing role in youth sports.

Private Equity…again

The New York Times has a look at the private equity firms that have rolled up software vendors serving volunteer fire departments and the costs increases those departments are experiencing. While the article is paywalled, the snip below sums things up pretty well.

Unfair Pricing Tactics

From price discrimination to price gouging to price fixing and surveillance pricing, big corporations are using a whole range of tactics to raise costs on you while also undermining smaller competitors. Justin held a webinar last week with Zephyr Teachout and experts from the AELP, ILSR, National Grocers Association and Consumer Reports about what states can do to address these issues. If you missed it, you can find it below.

BEFORE YOU GO

Before you go, I need two things from you: 1) if you like something, please share it on social media or the next time you have coffee with a friend. 2) Ideas, if you have any ideas for future newsletter content please comment below. Thank you.

Standing Tall for All,

J.D. Scholten