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During last year's race for the White House, Donald Trump courted the electorate with promises to reduce costs starting on day one. But, once his inauguration, he seemed to pay minimal focus to the cost of living. All that changed following inflation-weary voters delivered a rebuke at the ballot box. Shortly thereafter, his team initiated a slapdash effort to address affordability. Unfortunately, the drive has proven a disorganized endeavor—characterized by illogical claims, inconsistencies, unrealistic expectations, scapegoating, and misleading statements.

Out-of-Touch Claims and Grocery Store Truth

Merely 48 hours after the election, the president kicked off his cost-reduction push with a disastrous remark: “Our groceries are way down. All items is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” This comment from billionaire Trump—who frequently mingles with fellow billionaires—demonstrated utter contempt for millions of Americans who struggle every time they go the grocery store. In effect, he ignored their concerns as trivial, implying they were mistaken about price levels.

His assertion about declining prices was absurdly obtuse and inaccurate. How could all costs be decreasing when the taxes he imposed were pushing up prices? Official statistics indicate banana prices rose 6.9% in the last twelve months, beef prices climbed almost 15%, and coffee prices surged by nearly 19%—partly because of punitive tariffs applied to Brazilian products. In the first three quarters, prices rose in five of the six main grocery groups monitored by the Consumer Price Index, including animal proteins (rising over 4%), non-alcoholic beverages (increasing nearly 3%), and fruits and vegetables (up 1.3%).

Contradictions and Inaccuracies in Economic Claims

In spite of these numbers, the president continues to push his misleading narrative about affordability. After the vote, he has stated there is “almost no price increases,” declared “prices are way down,” and argued “living is cheaper under Trump than it was under sleepy Joe Biden.” These statements contradict the reality that general costs have clearly increased after the previous administration. Currently, price growth is running at a 3% annual rate, which is half again as much than the Federal Reserve’s target of 2 percent. In another falsehood, he claimed that fuel costs had dropped to nearly $2 a gallon, even though government figures show they are $3.19.

Faced with reality and lower approval ratings, some Trump aides evidently cautioned that his “prices are down” rhetoric portrayed him as disconnected from typical Americans. Many voters are angry about rising costs following promises of decreases. As a result, aides proposed one quick fix: reduce some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. This sensible idea clashed with the president’s unrealistic claim that new tariffs wouldn’t raise prices for US consumers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Possible Effects

With certain taxes being rolled back on several food items, the administration will likely claim that he has lowered costs once these products start declining in price. That would be like an arsonist taking credit for extinguishing a blaze that he ignited. In another instance, when addressing fast-food leaders, Trump stated that “we are in the peak period of America” and told listeners that “costs are decreasing and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a wealthy individual to make, but seem insincere to millions of Americans facing hardships—especially when many risk cuts to nutrition assistance or rising insurance costs.

Per a survey from October, three-quarters of respondents think the state of the economy are fair or poor, while only 26% rate them positive. A separate survey showed that a majority of citizens feel Trump’s policies have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Economic Truth and Proposed Steps

The treasury secretary, the president’s top economic official, lately contradicted claims of a golden age. He noted that far from booming, certain sectors of the US economy “are in recession.” Industrial production—which Trump vowed to save—appears to have contracted for multiple consecutive months and lost approximately tens of thousands of positions this year. Citing this weakness, the secretary called on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates—a move that could ease financial pressure.

In response to public dismay about living costs, the president proposed a direct payment of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” not for “high income people.” For many households in need, this sounds like a financial lifeline, but it is unlikely that lawmakers—already alarmed about huge budget deficits—will approve the proposal. The scheme could raise government expenditure, increase borrowing costs, and possibly fuel inflation by putting more money into consumers’ pockets.

Another supposed fix for affordability centered on introducing half-century home loans, based on the idea that they could lower housing costs. However, reality is that 50-year mortgages have minimal impact to reduce installments—often cutting them by just $100 or $200 per month. The drawback is that these mortgages could significantly increase the overall cost homeowners pay and slow building home value.

Blaming the Past Government and Economic Prospects

As part of their affordability campaign, Trump and his team have once more pointed fingers at the previous president for economic problems, including increasing costs. Officials stated they “inherited a disaster from Joe Biden” and were “cleaning up the prior administration’s price hikes.” This is unfounded and untruthful allegations. In reality, Biden left a robust economic situation, with low price growth, economic growth strong, and minimal joblessness. But, Trump’s policies—especially his tariffs—have created an economic mess, pushing up prices and reducing economic output.

According to Mark Zandi, chief economist at a research firm, numerous regions are experiencing economic decline, with their conditions worsened by the administration’s trade policies. Zandi worries that if large states like California and New York tumble into recession, the US could slide into a widespread recession. In downturns, consumers typically have reduced funds to spend, and inflation usually declines. Unfortunately, with the highly-touted cost initiative likely to do little to control costs, his primary method for improving living standards might end up triggering an economic contraction—something that hard-pressed households really can’t afford.