Inflation Gobbles Up Thanksgiving Dinner

There's always something to be thankful for over the holidays, but inflation is not on that list. Thanksgiving is just around the corner and American families are preparing for a hefty grocery bill due to years of bloated government spending and overregulation. The cost of hosting Thanksgiving dinner rose sharply after 2019, and despite small price decreases to many staples, prices are still not back to where they were before President Biden took office. Thanks in part to a four-year Biden Administration federal spending binge, inflation is up nearly twenty percent since January 2021. Dinner guests should savor the Thanksgiving classics – turkey, potatoes, green beans, boxed stuffing, and bread – because hosts will have paid over 37% more for these foods since 2019.

Sources: American Farm Bureau Federation, BLS, USDA

Then, when dessert gets passed around, hopefully guests can taste the 42% cost increase in their pumpkin pie since 2019. The main ingredients –flour, sugar, pumpkin pie mix, eggs, butter, and milk – have all risen in price.

Sources: American Farm Bureau Federation, BLS

On top of that, guests traveling home for Thanksgiving continue to pay more at the pump, with gas prices still elevated beyond sustainable levels for most American households. When the Biden Administration took office in January 2021, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas was $2.39. Today, that same gallon of gas costs $3.06 – a 28% increase.

Source: AAA Gas Database

The federal government should stop gobbling up extra portions of Thanksgiving dinner and end the inflationary waste of American taxpayer dollars. As Congress looks ahead to 2025 and begins setting a pro-growth, pro-family legislative agenda, they would be wise to tackle inflation and address the sky-high cost of living quickly through the reconciliation process. Maybe then, Americans can stop worrying about the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) stealing their slice of pie.