A CNN and SSRS poll from May 2026 found that 76 percent of Americans now cite the cost of living as their top economic concern. Electricity bills are roughly $40 higher per month than in 2017. Gasoline prices climbed above $4 per gallon on average nationally. Food costs remain elevated. And the sweeping import tariffs that the Trump administration implemented in 2025 and 2026 have created a specific additional cost pressure on the retail goods that American households buy eve