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During the previous presidential campaign, the former president courted the electorate with pledges to lower costs immediately upon taking office. However, once he assumed office, there was minimal attention to the cost of living. All that changed after inflation-weary citizens delivered a rebuke at the ballot box. Within days, his team launched a slapdash effort to tackle affordability. Regrettably, this initiative has proven a hot mess—characterized by illogical claims, inconsistencies, magical thinking, blame-shifting, and Trumpian dishonesty.

Out-of-Touch Assertions and Supermarket Truth

Just two days after the election, the president kicked off his affordability drive with a disastrous statement: “Food prices are way down. All items is way down… So I don’t want to hear about the cost of living.” These words from billionaire Trump—who frequently mingles with other ultra-rich individuals—demonstrated utter contempt for everyday citizens facing difficulties when visiting the grocery store. Essentially, he ignored their concerns as unimportant, suggesting they had it wrong about price levels.

His assertion about declining prices proved highly misleading and dishonest. How could every price be falling when his cherished tariffs were increasing costs? Official statistics show banana prices rose nearly 7% over the past year, the price of beef climbed 14.7%, and the cost of coffee jumped 18.9%—partly due to punitive tariffs on Brazil’s coffee and beef. In the first three quarters, costs increased in five of the six food categories tracked by the government’s price index, such as meats, poultry, and fish (up 4.5%), non-alcoholic beverages (up 2.8%), and produce (up 1.3%).

Contradictions and Falsehoods in Economic Claims

In spite of the evidence, Trump persists in repeating his misleading narrative about affordability. Since election day, he has claimed there is “almost no price increases,” declared “costs have fallen significantly,” and asserted “living is cheaper under Trump than it was under his predecessor.” Such remarks contradict the fact that general costs have unarguably risen since Biden left office. At present, inflation is at a 3 percent per year, that’s 50% higher than the Federal Reserve’s 2% goal. Adding to the inaccuracies, he claimed that fuel costs had dropped to nearly $2 a gallon, despite official data indicate they are $3.19.

Faced with actual conditions and declining opinion polls, some Trump aides evidently cautioned that his “costs are falling” message made him sound disconnected from typical Americans. A lot of voters are angry about prices continuing to climb after assurances of reductions. As a result, advisers proposed one quick fix: roll back some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. The logical move clashed with the president’s unrealistic claim that new tariffs would not increase costs for US consumers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Potential Effects

With certain taxes being rolled back on several food items, the administration will likely claim that he has lowered costs once those foods start declining in price. That would be like an arsonist taking credit for extinguishing a fire that he ignited. In another instance, while speaking fast-food leaders, he declared that “we are in the peak period of America” and told the audience that “prices are coming down and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a billionaire to make, but seem insincere to countless households facing hardships—particularly when millions face cuts to nutrition assistance or skyrocketing health premiums.

According to a recent poll from October, three-quarters of respondents think the state of the economy are fair or poor, while just a quarter rate them good or excellent. A separate survey found that 61% of Americans feel the administration’s actions have “made the economy worse” in the country.

Financial Truth and Proposed Measures

The treasury secretary, the president’s chief financial officer, lately disputed assertions of a golden age. He stated that instead of thriving, certain sectors of the US economy “have contracted.” The manufacturing sector—which Trump vowed to save—appears to have contracted for eight months in a row and lost around tens of thousands of positions since January. Pointing to these challenges, the secretary called on the central bank to reduce borrowing costs—an action that could help affordability.

Reacting to widespread concern about affordability, Trump proposed a direct payment of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” not for “the wealthy.” For many struggling Americans, it seems like manna from heaven, but it is unlikely that Congress—concerned about large shortfalls—will approve the proposal. The scheme could increase federal spending, increase interest rates, and potentially fuel inflation by putting more money into consumers’ pockets.

A further supposed fix for affordability centered on creating 50-year mortgages, based on the idea that they could reduce monthly mortgage payments. But, reality is that 50-year mortgages would do little to lower monthly payments—often cutting them by a small amount per month. The downside is that these mortgages could significantly increase the total interest homeowners pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Faulting the Previous Administration and Financial Prospects

In their affordability campaign, Trump and his team have again pointed fingers at the previous president for financial challenges, including increasing costs. Spokespeople stated they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “addressing Biden’s inflation.” These are unfounded and untruthful claims. In reality, the former president handed over a robust economic situation, with inflation way down, solid expansion, and unemployment low. However, Trump’s policies—especially import taxes—have created an difficult situation, driving costs higher and reducing economic output.

According to an economist, lead analyst at Moody’s Analytics, numerous regions are experiencing economic decline, with their economies damaged by Trump’s tariffs. Zandi fears that if large states like California and New York enter a downturn, the nation could face a broad economic slump. In downturns, people generally possess less money to spend, and price increases usually declines. Sadly, with the highly-touted affordability campaign probably ineffective to control costs, his most effective “tool” for achieving increased affordability might end up pushing the nation into recession—a scenario that struggling Americans cannot handle.