As the United States barrels toward the 2026 primary elections, the economic anxieties of middle-class Americans are taking center stage, fueled by a confluence of legal, financial, and political developments that have far-reaching implications for households and the nation’s economic future. Recent Supreme Court rulings, record-breaking consumer debt, and a heated congressional race in Texas all reflect the mounting pressure on ordinary citizens—and the shifting strategies of those in power.
On February 20, 2026, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark decision by striking down most of the tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump during his second term. According to reporting from multiple outlets, the justices reasoned that the power to impose tariffs, akin to other forms of taxation, is constitutionally vested in Congress—not the President acting alone. This ruling, lauded as a victory for the rule of law and the separation of powers, has nonetheless left many Americans with a sense of bittersweet vindication.
For months, Trump’s tariffs had been a source of controversy, with critics arguing that they functioned as an unfair tax increase. The burden, as highlighted by various analyses, fell disproportionately on low- and middle-income families, while wealthier households were largely insulated. The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down these tariffs, while celebrated in principle, does not erase the economic pain already inflicted. If refunds for the now-defunct tariffs are eventually issued, the benefits will likely accrue to large importing corporations rather than consumers. As several experts have noted, these companies have little incentive to pass savings on to everyday Americans, effectively turning the refund process into a transfer of income from ordinary citizens to corporate coffers.
Yet, the saga is far from over. The Trump administration has signaled its intent to reimpose similar tariff policies under different statutory justifications. While this approach may be more cumbersome for officials, it could ultimately result in tariffs just as significant as those recently struck down, but with less vulnerability to legal challenges. The administration’s maneuvering underscores a broader trend: the executive branch’s persistent efforts to shape tax policy, sometimes circumventing congressional authority and, critics argue, democratic norms.
Adding to the complexity, federal courts have generally ruled that no party has standing to challenge regulations that cut taxes, even when such regulations stretch or ignore statutory boundaries. Earlier in February, the Treasury Department introduced new exceptions to the corporate minimum tax enacted in 2022, potentially granting massive tax breaks to a handful of companies reporting over a billion dollars in annual profits. This move, while legal under current judicial interpretations, has sparked concerns about the erosion of legislative oversight and the growing influence of executive agencies in tax policy.
Amid these policy battles in Washington, everyday Americans are grappling with the tangible consequences of inflation and rising costs. According to the New York Fed, credit card balances soared to a record $1.28 trillion by the end of 2025, reflecting the financial strain on households striving to cover basic necessities like groceries, rent, and utilities. For many, the solution has been to take on even more debt—often in the form of unsecured personal loans.
TransUnion, one of the country’s major credit reporting agencies, forecasts that unsecured personal loan originations will surge by 5.7% in 2026, outpacing the growth of new mortgages and credit card accounts. In the third quarter of 2025 alone, personal loan originations hit a record 7.2 million, marking the second consecutive quarter of new highs. Fintech lenders, such as LendingClub and SoFi, have played a pivotal role in this trend, accounting for 42% of personal loan originations in the third quarter of 2025—up from about a third a year earlier.
The driving force behind this borrowing boom is a growing cohort of “subprime” borrowers—individuals with credit scores below 600. TransUnion projects that subprime borrowers will make up about 40% of personal loan originations in 2026, up from 32.5% in the third quarter of 2025. Michele Raneri, vice president and head of U.S. research and consulting at TransUnion, explained, “We’re seeing a larger distribution of subprime consumers every quarter, and so they don’t have any slack.” Higher-income Americans, by contrast, are more likely to tap home equity lines of credit at lower interest rates, further widening the so-called K-shaped economic split between the haves and have-nots.
Personal loans are often marketed as a means to consolidate high-interest credit card debt. Jim Triggs, CEO of Money Management International, described them as “the middle-class refinancing option for high-interest credit card debt,” noting their exponential growth. However, Triggs cautioned that subprime borrowers rarely secure significantly better rates. As of mid-February 2026, the average personal loan rate stood at 12.15%, while the average credit card rate was 19.6%—but subprime applicants could face rates as high as 24% or more. “You may be paying 28%, even 30% [rates on] your credit cards, but your personal loan may only be, maybe, at 24%, so you don’t have that much relief,” Triggs said. Moreover, personal loan borrowers are generally locked into fixed monthly payments for three to five years, which may offer only limited respite for those with tight budgets.
These economic pressures are reverberating through the political sphere, particularly in the lead-up to the March 3, 2026, primary election in Texas’s District 10. Bernie Reyna, a self-styled blue-collar, middle-class candidate, has made economic fairness and representation the cornerstone of his campaign. “Congress is made up of, 2% of Congress is made up of middle-class blue-collar workers,” Reyna told KBTX. “The rest are lobbyists, lawyers, financial speculators, people who don’t have a vested interest in the middle class. So I’m standing up to serve and to be an advocate for the middle class and for the blue-collar workers who are making this country go.”
Reyna has identified inflation, affordability, and infrastructure as the most pressing issues for his district, proposing the restoration of a public bank to provide national credit to farmers, builders, and manufacturers. He believes this would help American industries compete globally and spur economic growth. Drawing on his upbringing in Orange County, California—a region straddling rural and urban divides—Reyna argues that effective representation requires understanding the unique needs of both communities.
On national policy, Reyna offers a nuanced perspective. He credits President Trump for signing the Epstein Transparency Act but criticizes the administration’s tariff strategy. “Those tariffs are a tax. Taxes originate in Congress, not the executive branch,” Reyna said. “Those tariffs need to be debated and argued about in Congress, not just at the executive branch.” On immigration, Reyna advocates for sweeping reforms, including moving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the U.S. Marshals and imposing stricter oversight, citing concerns about for-profit detention centers and the incentives they create.
Taken together, these developments paint a portrait of a nation at a crossroads, where legal rulings, economic realities, and political aspirations are colliding in ways that will shape the fortunes of the middle class for years to come. As Americans head to the polls, the question of who truly represents their interests—and how best to address their mounting financial challenges—remains as urgent as ever.