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During last year's presidential campaign, Donald Trump courted voters with pledges to reduce prices immediately upon taking office. But, once he assumed office, there was minimal attention to the cost of living. This shifted after price-fatigued voters expressed dissatisfaction at the polls. Shortly thereafter, his team initiated a slapdash effort to address affordability. Regrettably, this initiative has proven a disorganized endeavor—characterized by absurdity, inconsistencies, unrealistic expectations, blame-shifting, and misleading statements.

Detached Assertions and Supermarket Reality

Just two days after the election, Trump kicked off his cost-reduction push with a disastrous remark: “Food prices are way down. Everything is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” These words from billionaire Trump—often mingles with fellow billionaires—revealed a lack of empathy for millions of Americans facing difficulties every time they go supermarkets. In effect, he dismissed their struggles as unimportant, suggesting they had it wrong about price levels.

His assertion about declining prices proved absurdly obtuse and inaccurate. How could every price be decreasing when the taxes he imposed were increasing prices? Official statistics indicate the cost of bananas rose 6.9% in the last twelve months, beef prices went up 14.7%, and coffee prices surged 18.9%—in part because of punitive tariffs on Brazil’s coffee and beef. Between January and September, prices rose in five of the six food categories tracked by the Consumer Price Index, such as animal proteins (up 4.5%), drinks (increasing nearly 3%), and produce (up 1.3%).

Inconsistencies and Inaccuracies in Financial Claims

In spite of the evidence, the president continues to push his big lie about lower costs. Since election day, he has stated there is “virtually no inflation,” declared “prices are way down,” 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. Currently, price growth is at a 3% annual rate, that’s 50% higher than the central bank’s 2% goal. Adding to the inaccuracies, he claimed that gas prices had dropped to nearly $2 a gallon, even though government figures indicate they are $3.19.

Faced with actual conditions and declining opinion polls, some Trump aides evidently cautioned that his “costs are falling” message portrayed him as dangerously out of touch from ordinary people. Many voters are frustrated about prices continuing to climb after promises of decreases. In response, advisers proposed a simple solution: roll back 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 Solutions and Their Potential Effects

With certain taxes being rolled back on coffee, beef, tomatoes, and bananas, Trump will probably announce that he has cut prices once these products start declining in price. That would be like an arsonist taking credit for putting out a blaze that he ignited. In another instance, when addressing fast-food leaders, Trump stated that “this is the peak period of America” and assured listeners that “costs are decreasing and all of that stuff.” Such statements are easy for a billionaire to make, but seem insincere to millions of Americans facing hardships—particularly when many face losing food stamps or skyrocketing health premiums.

According to a survey from October, 74% of Americans think economic conditions are fair or poor, while only 26% rate them good or excellent. A separate survey showed that a majority of citizens say the administration’s actions have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Economic Truth and Proposed Steps

Scott Bessent, the president’s chief financial officer, lately disputed claims of a golden age. He stated that far from booming, some parts of the American economy “have contracted.” Industrial production—a priority for the administration—seems to have shrunk for multiple consecutive months and lost around 33,000 jobs since January. Pointing to this weakness, Bessent called on the central bank to reduce borrowing costs—a move that could ease financial pressure.

In response to public dismay about affordability, the president suggested a cash handout of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” excluding “the wealthy.” For many struggling Americans, this sounds like a financial lifeline, but the prospects are dim that lawmakers—concerned about large shortfalls—will approve such a plan. This idea could raise government expenditure, increase interest rates, and potentially drive prices higher by injecting cash into the economy.

A further supposed fix for affordability involved introducing half-century home loans, based on the idea that they could reduce monthly mortgage payments. But, the truth is that 50-year mortgages have minimal impact to lower monthly payments—often cutting them by a small amount each month. The downside is that these mortgages could significantly increase the overall cost homeowners pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Past Government and Financial Prospects

As part of their cost-cutting effort, Trump and his team have once more pointed fingers at Biden for financial challenges, such as rising prices. Officials claimed they “inherited a disaster from Joe Biden” and were “cleaning up the prior administration’s price hikes.” This is absurd and untruthful claims. In reality, Biden left a robust economic situation, with low price growth, economic growth strong, and minimal joblessness. However, Trump’s policies—particularly import taxes—have created an economic mess, driving costs higher and slowing GDP growth.

Per an economist, chief economist at a research firm, 22 states are experiencing economic decline, with their conditions worsened by Trump’s tariffs. He fears that if key regions such as major economies tumble into recession, the nation could face a widespread recession. In downturns, consumers generally possess reduced funds to spend, and inflation usually declines. Unfortunately, with the highly-touted affordability campaign probably ineffective to control costs, his primary method for improving living standards might end up pushing the nation into recession—something that struggling Americans cannot handle.