Rep. Addison McDowell told ABC News viewers to "trust the president" on tariffs — but those tariffs are now costing the average American household $1,300 a year, driving up grocery prices, and contributing to manufacturing layoffs in McDowell's own district. Meanwhile, McDowell voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill, which cut over $187 billion from SNAP — threatening food assistance for 1.4 million North Carolinians, including 600,000 children — while delivering its largest tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires. The bill also let ACA subsidies expire, causing a 29% premium spike that hit 800,000 North Carolinians, and shifted tens of millions in new SNAP administrative costs onto county governments already stretched thin. McDowell's district includes Guilford County, which ranks among the worst metro areas in the country for food insecurity — yet his votes have made groceries more expensive, health care less affordable, and food assistance harder to access for the families who need it most.
McDowell Told ABC News Viewers To "Trust The President" When Asked About Tariff Impacts. According to ABC News, McDowell appeared on ABC News Live in May 2025 to discuss "President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office and tariff policy," defending the administration's trade agenda under the headline "Trust the president." [ABC News, 5/5/25]
Trump's Tariffs Amounted To The Largest U.S. Tax Increase As A Percent Of GDP Since 1993, Costing The Average Household $1,300 In 2026. According to the Tax Foundation, Trump's tariffs represent "the largest US tax increase as a percent of GDP (0.54 percent for 2026) since 1993," costing the average American household $1,000 in 2025 and $1,300 in 2026. [Tax Foundation, Viewed 2/16/26]
Three-In-Four North Carolina Voters Said Tariffs Would Increase Prices. According to a Carolina Journal poll of 614 likely North Carolina voters, 75% believed tariffs would make products more expensive, and only 10% chose tariffs as their preferred method for creating manufacturing jobs. [Carolina Journal, 5/25]
Tariffs Drove Up Grocery Prices For North Carolina Families, With Beef Up 16% And Coffee Up Nearly 20%. According to Progress NC Action, North Carolina families saw frozen fish prices rise 8%, beef prices rise 16%, and coffee prices rise nearly 20% due to tariff-driven cost increases. [Progress NC Action, 2/26]
McDowell Voted For The One Big Beautiful Bill, Which Cut $187 Billion From SNAP Over The Next Decade — The Largest Cut To The Program In History. According to the NC Institute of Medicine, the bill threatens food assistance for 1.4 million North Carolinians, including 46,000 veterans. The law raised the work requirement age ceiling from 54 to 64 and eliminated exemptions for veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and former foster youth. [NCIOM, Viewed 2/16/26]
McDowell's Vote Shifted Hundreds Of Millions In New SNAP Costs To North Carolina Counties. According to the NC Institute of Medicine, the bill increased the state's share of SNAP administrative costs from 50% to 75%, costing North Carolina an estimated $420 million annually — with the state on the hook for $65 million and county governments for an additional $14 million. North Carolina's 10.21% error rate could trigger an additional $433 million annual penalty. [NCIOM, Viewed 2/16/26]
McDowell Represents One Of The Most Food-Insecure Districts In The Country. According to the Food Research and Action Center, the Greensboro-High Point metropolitan area — which overlaps heavily with NC-06 — ranked as the worst metro area in the nation for food hardship among the top 100 MSAs. [Greensboro News and Record, 4/16/15]
McDowell Voted Against Extending ACA Subsidies, Causing A 29% Premium Spike For 800,000 North Carolinians. According to NC Health News, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina — McDowell's former employer — announced a 29% increase for 2026 ACA plans after the subsidies expired. According to Progress NC Action, 800,000 North Carolinians experienced a 30% average rate increase and 200,000 lost coverage entirely. [NC Health News, 8/15/25; Progress NC Action, 2/26]
McDowell Voted To Cut $1 Trillion From Medicaid, Threatening Coverage For More Than 670,000 North Carolinians. According to WFAE, the One Big Beautiful Bill's Medicaid provisions could trigger an automatic rollback of North Carolina's Medicaid expansion — enacted just two years earlier — and cost the state nearly $37.5 billion in federal funding over the next decade. [WFAE, 1/17/26]
The One Big Beautiful Bill Gave The Richest 1% An Average Tax Cut Of More Than $50,000 While The Poorest 20% Got Just $110. According to the Center for American Progress, the average family earning less than $50,000 received about $250 in tax cuts — less than $1 a day — while filers earning $1 million or more received over $100,000 in tax breaks. Households in the lowest income bracket lost about $1,200 annually after accounting for cuts to Medicaid and food assistance. [Center for American Progress, Viewed 2/16/26]
An 83-Year-Old North Carolinian Said She Could Barely Afford Food. According to Progress NC Action, one resident wrote, "'At 83 years old, I can barely buy food.'" Another said, "'I work too hard to be struggling this much financially.'" [Progress NC Action, 2/26]
A Western North Carolina Food Bank Director Said His Neighbors Were "Scared" And "Anxious" About Feeding Their Children. According to WLOS, Rev. Scott Rogers of the Asheville-Buncombe Community Christian Ministry said, "'Our neighbors are hurting right now. They're scared, they're anxious, they're worried most about their children.'" He noted that "'having that kind of work that can show a paycheck or a paycheck stub is a real challenge'" for many people newly subject to SNAP work requirements. [WLOS, Viewed 2/16/26]
A North Carolina Man's Monthly Health Insurance Premium Nearly Tripled After ACA Subsidies Expired. According to Carolina Public Press, Adrian Pitts of Hendersonville saw his monthly premium rise from approximately $1,000 to $2,670 and said, "'I have had to re-engineer things that I'm doing in terms of how I'm saving for retirement.'" [Carolina Public Press, 1/15/26]
A North Carolina Resident Said She Did Not "Know Anyone Right Now Who Is Not Stressed Out About Having Enough Money To Keep Their Home Or Feed Their Family." According to Progress NC Action, one North Carolinian wrote, "'I don't know anyone right now who is not stressed out about having enough money to keep their home or feed their family.'" [Progress NC Action, 2/26]