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Throughout the previous presidential campaign, the former president courted voters with pledges to lower prices immediately upon taking office. But, once he assumed office, there was precious little attention to affordability issues. This shifted following price-fatigued citizens expressed dissatisfaction at the ballot box. Shortly thereafter, the Trump administration initiated a slapdash campaign to address affordability. Unfortunately, this initiative has proven a hot mess—filled with illogical claims, contradictions, unrealistic expectations, scapegoating, and misleading statements.

Detached Claims and Supermarket Truth

Just two days after the election, Trump kicked off his cost-reduction push with a poorly received 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—often associates with fellow billionaires—revealed a lack of empathy for everyday citizens facing difficulties every time they go supermarkets. Essentially, he ignored their struggles as trivial, implying they had it wrong about price levels.

His assertion that everything was “way down” proved highly misleading and inaccurate. How could every price be decreasing when the taxes he imposed were increasing prices? Recent data show banana prices increased 6.9% in the last twelve months, the price of beef climbed almost 15%, and the cost of coffee jumped 18.9%—in part because of import taxes on Brazil’s coffee and beef. In the first three quarters, prices rose in five of the six food categories tracked by the Consumer Price Index, such as meats, poultry, and fish (up 4.5%), non-alcoholic beverages (up 2.8%), and produce (rising slightly).

Inconsistencies and Falsehoods in Financial Statements

Despite these numbers, Trump continues to push his misleading narrative about lower costs. Since election day, he has stated there is “virtually no inflation,” insisted “costs have fallen significantly,” and argued “it is far less expensive under Trump than it was under his predecessor.” These statements contradict the fact that general costs have unarguably risen since Biden left office. Currently, price growth is running at a 3 percent per year, that’s half again as much than the central bank’s target of 2 percent. In another falsehood, Trump claimed that fuel costs had fallen to around two dollars, despite official data show they are over three dollars.

Confronted by actual conditions and lower approval ratings, advisers apparently warned that his “costs are falling” rhetoric made him sound dangerously out of touch from typical Americans. A lot of citizens are angry about prices continuing to climb following promises of reductions. In response, aides suggested one quick fix: reduce some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. This sensible idea contradicted the president’s unrealistic claim that new tariffs wouldn’t raise prices for US consumers.

Proposed Fixes and Their Possible Impact

With some tariffs reduced on several food items, the administration will probably announce that he has cut prices once those foods begin to fall in price. This would be like an arsonist taking credit for putting out a fire that he had started. In another instance, while speaking McDonald’s executives, he declared that “we are in the golden age of America” and told listeners that “costs are decreasing and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a billionaire to make, but seem insincere to millions of Americans who are struggling—particularly when millions risk cuts to nutrition assistance or skyrocketing health premiums.

According to a recent poll from October, three-quarters of respondents believe the state of the economy are fair or poor, while just a quarter consider them positive. Another poll found that a majority of citizens feel Trump’s policies have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Financial Reality and Proposed Measures

Scott Bessent, Trump’s top economic official, recently contradicted claims of a prosperous era. He stated that far from booming, some parts of the US economy “are in recession.” The manufacturing sector—which Trump vowed to save—seems to have shrunk for multiple consecutive months and lost approximately tens of thousands of positions this year. Pointing to this weakness, Bessent called on the central bank to cut interest rates—a move that could ease financial pressure.

In response to widespread concern about living costs, the president suggested a direct payment of “a payout of at least $2,000 a person” excluding “high income people.” For many struggling Americans, it seems like manna from heaven, but the prospects are dim that Congress—already alarmed about large shortfalls—will approve the proposal. The scheme would likely increase federal spending, push up interest rates, and potentially drive prices higher by putting more money into consumers’ pockets.

Another supposed fix for affordability involved introducing 50-year mortgages, with the notion that this would lower housing costs. However, reality is that such lengthy loans would do little to lower monthly payments—often cutting them by a small amount each month. The drawback is that these mortgages could significantly increase the overall cost borrowers pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Previous Administration and Financial Prospects

In their cost-cutting effort, Trump and his team have again blamed the previous president for economic problems, including rising prices. Spokespeople stated they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “addressing Biden’s inflation.” These are absurd and untruthful allegations. Actually, Biden left a robust economic situation, with inflation way down, economic growth strong, and unemployment low. But, the current administration’s actions—particularly import taxes—have created an difficult situation, pushing up prices and reducing economic output.

Per an economist, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, numerous regions are already in recession, with their conditions worsened by the administration’s trade policies. Zandi fears that if key regions like California and New York tumble into recession, the US could slide into a broad economic slump. In downturns, consumers typically have reduced funds to spend, and inflation often falls. Unfortunately, with Trump’s much-ballyhooed affordability campaign likely to do little to control costs, his primary method for improving living standards might prove to be pushing the nation into recession—a scenario that hard-pressed households cannot handle.