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During last year's race for the White House, the former president wooed the electorate with promises to lower prices immediately upon taking office. But, once he assumed office, there was minimal attention to affordability issues. All that changed after inflation-weary voters expressed dissatisfaction at the polls. Shortly thereafter, his team launched a slapdash effort to address affordability. Regrettably, the drive has proven a hot mess—characterized by absurdity, contradictions, magical thinking, scapegoating, and Trumpian dishonesty.

Detached Claims and Grocery Store Reality

Merely 48 hours after the election, the president kicked off his affordability drive with a disastrous remark: “Our groceries are way down. Everything is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” These words from the wealthy leader—who frequently mingles with other ultra-rich individuals—revealed utter contempt for everyday citizens who struggle when visiting the grocery store. In effect, he ignored their concerns as unimportant, implying they had it wrong about price levels.

This statement about declining prices proved absurdly obtuse and dishonest. How could every price be falling when the taxes he imposed were increasing prices? Official statistics indicate the cost of bananas rose nearly 7% over the past year, beef prices climbed 14.7%, and coffee prices jumped 18.9%—partly due to import taxes on Brazil’s coffee and beef. Between January and September, prices rose in the majority of food categories tracked by the government’s price index, including animal proteins (up 4.5%), drinks (increasing nearly 3%), and produce (rising slightly).

Inconsistencies and Inaccuracies in Financial Claims

In spite of these numbers, Trump continues to push his big lie about affordability. After the vote, he has stated there is “virtually no inflation,” declared “prices are way down,” and argued “living is cheaper under Trump than it was under his predecessor.” These statements ignore the reality that prices overall have unarguably risen after the previous administration. Currently, price growth is running at a 3% annual rate, which is 50% higher than the Federal Reserve’s target of 2 percent. Adding to the inaccuracies, he boasted that gas prices had fallen to around two dollars, even though government figures indicate they average $3.19.

Confronted by reality and declining opinion polls, some Trump aides evidently warned that his “prices are down” message made him sound disconnected from typical Americans. A lot of voters are angry about rising costs after promises of reductions. As a result, advisers suggested one quick fix: roll back some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. This sensible idea clashed with the president’s unrealistic claim that additional taxes would not increase costs for US consumers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Possible Impact

As some tariffs reduced on several food items, Trump will likely claim that he has cut prices once these products start declining in price. That would be similar to a firestarter boasting for putting out a blaze that he had started. In another instance, while speaking McDonald’s executives, Trump declared that “we are in the golden age of America” and assured listeners that “costs are decreasing and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a wealthy individual to make, but they ring hollow to countless households facing hardships—particularly when millions face cuts to nutrition assistance or skyrocketing health premiums.

Per a recent poll from October, three-quarters of respondents think the state of the economy are fair or poor, while only 26% consider them good or excellent. A separate survey found that 61% of Americans say the administration’s actions have “made the economy worse” in the country.

Financial Truth and Proposed Measures

Scott Bessent, the president’s top economic official, lately contradicted assertions of a prosperous era. He stated that instead of thriving, certain sectors of the US economy “have contracted.” Industrial production—a priority for the administration—appears to have contracted for multiple consecutive months and lost around 33,000 jobs this year. Citing this weakness, Bessent called on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates—an action that could ease financial pressure.

Reacting to widespread concern about affordability, the president suggested a cash handout of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” excluding “high income people.” For many households in need, it seems like manna from heaven, but the prospects are dim that Congress—already alarmed about huge budget deficits—will enact the proposal. The scheme could raise government expenditure, push up interest rates, and possibly drive prices higher by injecting cash into consumers’ pockets.

Another proposed solution for affordability centered on creating 50-year mortgages, based on the idea that this would reduce monthly mortgage payments. However, reality is that 50-year mortgages would do little to lower monthly payments—often cutting them by a small amount each month. The drawback is that these loans could significantly increase the total interest homeowners pay and slow their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Past Government and Financial Prospects

In their affordability campaign, the administration have once more pointed fingers at Biden for financial challenges, such as increasing costs. Spokespeople claimed they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “cleaning up Biden’s inflation.” This is absurd and inaccurate claims. In reality, the former president handed over a robust economic situation, with inflation way down, solid expansion, and unemployment low. But, Trump’s policies—especially his tariffs—have resulted in an economic mess, driving costs higher and reducing economic output.

Per an economist, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, numerous regions are experiencing economic decline, with their conditions worsened by the administration’s trade policies. He worries that if large states like major economies enter a downturn, the US could face a widespread recession. During recessions, consumers generally possess less money to spend, and price increases usually declines. Sadly, given Trump’s much-ballyhooed affordability campaign likely to do little to control costs, his primary method for achieving increased affordability might prove to be pushing the nation into recession—something that hard-pressed households really can’t afford.