Burritos as a Barometer: Conservatives Reimagine Capitalism

POLITICO Playbook reports that Republican economic thinking is shifting from pure free-market orthodoxy to more interventionist, populist capitalism, led by Pence’s network, a growing embrace of tariffs, and new frames like covenant economics and common-good capitalism from Hawley and Rubio, signaling a broader ideological realignment ahead of 2028—kept relatable to voters with the burrito-cost debate as a symbol of everyday concerns.