A viral $20 burrito is sparking debate over food prices—and the overall affordability crisis—among conservatives and members of the GOP on social media.
The debate began last week after Turning Point USA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet posted on X, “A burrito shouldn’t cost $20,” responding to a college student who complained to him over the hefty price.
While the origin story of this particular $20 burrito isn’t quite clear, it appears the student was referring to how much an average burrito costs to get delivered these days. (For example, in Washington, D.C., a Chipotle steak burrito is $13.37, including tax, plus $2.95 for guacamole; with delivery via DoorDash that adds up to $20.68, according to The Washington Post.)
“Stop whining, get a job, eat Ramen like the rest of us did in college, on a budget with 4 roommates,” Representative Dan Crenshaw, a Republican from Texas, wrote on X, flaming the fire. “The market doesn’t care what you think something ‘should’ cost. Only communists care (they set prices remember? Then everyone starves, remember?) Are you a communist? Or are you an American adult male capable of handling his own shit?”
Crenshaw apologized after social media erupted in criticism. (“A civil war brewing within the GOP is never a bad thing, especially over affordability,” one Bluesky user posted.)
Back in 2021, Crenshaw made headlines when he posted, “just be vegan and stop complaining, you bunch of rubes,” mocking the Biden administration’s take on skyrocketing grocery prices.
Crenshaw recently lost his reelection bid in Texas’s 2nd Congressional District.
Meanwhile, Fox News contributor Marc Thiessen posted on X: “Cry me a river. The burritos in the college cafeteria are included in your meal plan.”
Vice President JD Vance replied on the social media platform: “I’m surprised to hear Mark say this. If you’ve ever met him in person, it’s quite obvious the man has never missed a burrito” (a response that may be another sign of the Trump administration’s ongoing strategy of courting young male voters).
Regardless of what side conservatives find themselves on, at the very least the debate has sparked a conversation about the affordability crisis that Americans young and old now face.
In response to the comments, Angela Morabito, a spokesperson for the right-leaning nonprofit Defense of Freedom Institute, wrote on X: “If the Right’s ‘solution’ to the affordability crisis is telling people to eat worse food, we will lose, and we will deserve it.”
Over the past few years, the cost of living in the U.S. has spiraled upward—outpacing wages, according to the Urban Institute, a nonprofit specializing in economic policy that tracks affordability. Since 2017, home sale prices have increased 81% and rents are up 54%, as wages lag behind, up just 43%. Childcare and healthcare costs have also soared, with the lowest-cost Silver health plan from the Affordable Care Act marketplace rising 77%, per the institute’s tracker.
In all, Urban research finds that 49%, or nearly half of people in American families, cannot afford the current “true” cost of living.