I live in Dillon, Montana, population 4,000, in Beaverhead County, a large county know for its farming and ranching. We have two grocery stores. In years past, we had a large department store. That store closed a decade ago. Now all we have is Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. Family Dollar filed for bankruptcy a few years ago. Dollar Tree bought Family Dollar, then in 2024, Dollar Tree filed for bankruptcy. Neither store is thriving.
Recently, I went into Dollar Tree and walked around the store, checking labels on clothing and toys and other items. MANY of the items come from China. In rural communities in the USA, these are the types of stores available locally. Many Dillon residents rely heavily on goods from these two stores. Many poorer individuals buy a significant number of food items from these stores.
Our nearest Walmart is in Butte, 65 miles away. And our nearest Target is in Bozeman, 120 miles away. Many items in Walmart and Target are also manufactured in China. I’ve been waiting for four months from some clothing I ordered online from Walmart. When I tracked it, I learned it was from China. It has apparently reached a New York port of entry. It has been sitting there for four months.
It is clear that tariffs on China will quickly result in increased prices in these stores, and long delays, assuming that China will even send us these items anymore.
If the White House really wants to bring manufacturing back to the United States, the way to do it is to build manufacturing infrastructure throughout the USA. That is what the Inflation Reduction Act was aimed at. And even with local manufacturing, we will still need to import many items from China and other countries for years to come.
Dr. Delena Norris-Tull
Professor Emerita, University of Montana Western
Dillon