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Throughout the previous presidential campaign, the former president wooed the electorate with promises to reduce costs immediately upon taking office. However, after his inauguration, there was minimal focus to affordability issues. All that changed following inflation-weary citizens delivered a rebuke at the polls. Within days, the Trump administration launched a slapdash effort to tackle affordability. Regrettably, the drive is a hot mess—characterized by absurdity, inconsistencies, unrealistic expectations, blame-shifting, and misleading statements.

Out-of-Touch Assertions and Supermarket Truth

Just two days post-election, the president began his affordability drive with a disastrous statement: “Food prices are way down. Everything is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” These words from billionaire Trump—who frequently associates with other ultra-rich individuals—revealed utter contempt for millions of Americans who struggle every time they go the grocery store. In effect, he dismissed their concerns as trivial, implying they had it wrong about price levels.

His assertion about declining prices proved absurdly obtuse and dishonest. How could all costs be falling when his cherished tariffs were increasing costs? Recent data indicate the cost of bananas increased nearly 7% over the past year, beef prices climbed 14.7%, and coffee prices surged by nearly 19%—partly due to punitive tariffs applied to Brazilian products. Between January and September, costs increased in the majority of food categories tracked by the Consumer Price Index, such as animal proteins (up 4.5%), non-alcoholic beverages (increasing nearly 3%), and fruits and vegetables (rising slightly).

Contradictions and Falsehoods in Economic Claims

In spite of these numbers, the president continues to push his big lie about affordability. Since election day, he has claimed there is “almost no price increases,” declared “prices are way down,” and asserted “it is far less expensive under Trump than it was under his predecessor.” Such remarks ignore the fact that general costs have clearly increased since Biden left office. At present, inflation is at a 3% annual rate, that’s 50% higher than the Federal Reserve’s target of 2 percent. In another falsehood, he claimed that gas prices had dropped to nearly $2 a gallon, even though official data show they are $3.19.

Confronted by reality and lower approval ratings, some Trump aides apparently cautioned that his “prices are down” rhetoric portrayed him as dangerously out of touch from ordinary people. A lot of citizens are angry about rising costs following promises of reductions. As a result, advisers proposed a simple solution: 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 American shoppers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Possible Impact

As some tariffs being rolled back on several food items, Trump will likely announce that he has lowered costs once these products begin to fall in price. That would be similar to a firestarter boasting for putting out a fire that he had started. In another instance, while speaking fast-food leaders, he declared that “we are in the golden age of America” and told the audience that “prices are coming down and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a wealthy individual to make, but they ring hollow to millions of Americans facing hardships—particularly when many risk cuts to nutrition assistance or rising insurance costs.

According to a survey conducted last fall, three-quarters of respondents think economic conditions are mediocre or bad, while only 26% rate them good or excellent. Another poll found that 61% of Americans say Trump’s policies have “made the economy worse” in the country.

Economic Truth and Proposed Measures

The treasury secretary, Trump’s top economic official, recently contradicted claims of a golden age. He noted that instead of thriving, some parts of the US economy “are in recession.” The manufacturing sector—a priority for the administration—seems to have shrunk for eight months in a row and lost approximately tens of thousands of positions this year. Pointing to these challenges, Bessent urged the Federal Reserve to reduce borrowing costs—an action that could help affordability.

Reacting to public dismay about affordability, Trump suggested a cash handout of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” not for “the wealthy.” For many households in need, it seems like a financial lifeline, but it is unlikely that Congress—concerned about huge budget deficits—will approve such a plan. This idea could raise government expenditure, push up borrowing costs, and possibly drive prices higher by injecting cash into consumers’ pockets.

Another proposed solution for affordability involved introducing 50-year mortgages, based on the idea that this would lower housing costs. But, reality is that such lengthy loans have minimal impact to reduce installments—frequently reducing them by just $100 or $200 per month. The drawback is that these mortgages could more than double the overall cost homeowners pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Previous Administration and Economic Prospects

As part of their affordability campaign, the administration have once more blamed Biden for economic problems, such as rising prices. Officials claimed they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “addressing Biden’s inflation.” These are unfounded and untruthful claims. Actually, Biden handed over a strong economy, with low price growth, economic growth strong, and unemployment low. But, the current administration’s actions—especially his tariffs—have resulted in an economic mess, pushing up prices and slowing GDP growth.

According to an economist, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, 22 states are experiencing economic decline, with their conditions worsened by the administration’s trade policies. Zandi fears that if large states like California and New York tumble into recession, the US could face a broad economic slump. In downturns, people generally possess less money to spend, and inflation usually declines. Sadly, with the highly-touted affordability campaign probably ineffective to hold down prices, his primary method for improving living standards might end up triggering an economic contraction—something that hard-pressed households cannot handle.