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Throughout last year's race for the White House, Donald Trump wooed voters with pledges to reduce prices immediately upon taking office. However, once his inauguration, there was precious little attention to affordability issues. All that changed following inflation-weary voters delivered a rebuke at the ballot box. Within days, the Trump administration launched a slapdash campaign to address affordability. Regrettably, this initiative is a disorganized endeavor—characterized by illogical claims, inconsistencies, unrealistic expectations, scapegoating, and misleading statements.

Out-of-Touch Assertions and Grocery Store Reality

Just two days after the election, Trump began his affordability drive with a disastrous statement: “Our groceries are way down. Everything is way down… So I don’t want to hear about the cost of living.” These words from the wealthy leader—who frequently mingles with fellow billionaires—revealed a lack of empathy for everyday citizens facing difficulties when visiting supermarkets. Essentially, he dismissed their struggles as trivial, implying they had it wrong about actual costs.

His assertion that everything was “way down” proved absurdly obtuse and dishonest. How could every price be decreasing when the taxes he imposed were pushing up costs? Official statistics show banana prices increased 6.9% in the last twelve months, the price of beef climbed 14.7%, and coffee prices jumped 18.9%—partly because of import taxes on Brazil’s coffee and beef. In the first three quarters, prices rose in the majority of food categories monitored by the government’s price index, including animal proteins (up 4.5%), non-alcoholic beverages (increasing nearly 3%), and produce (up 1.3%).

Inconsistencies and Inaccuracies in Financial Claims

In spite of the evidence, Trump persists in repeating his big lie about lower costs. Since election day, he has claimed there is “almost no price increases,” insisted “prices are way down,” and asserted “living is cheaper under Trump than it was under sleepy Joe Biden.” Such remarks contradict the fact that general costs have unarguably risen since Biden left office. Currently, price growth is running at a 3% annual rate, which is 50% higher than the central bank’s 2% goal. In another falsehood, he claimed that gas prices had fallen to around two dollars, even though government figures indicate they are over three dollars.

Faced with reality 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. A lot of voters are frustrated about prices continuing to climb following assurances of reductions. As a result, advisers suggested one quick fix: reduce certain import taxes. This sensible idea clashed with Trump’s absurd assertion that new tariffs wouldn’t raise prices for US consumers.

Proposed Solutions and Their Possible Impact

With certain taxes reduced on coffee, beef, tomatoes, and bananas, the administration will probably announce that he has cut prices once these products start declining in price. This would be similar to a firestarter taking credit for putting out a fire that he had started. In another instance, while speaking fast-food leaders, Trump stated that “this is the peak period of America” and assured listeners that “prices are coming down and all of that stuff.” Such statements come naturally for a billionaire to make, but seem insincere to countless households facing hardships—particularly when many risk losing food stamps or skyrocketing health premiums.

According to a recent poll conducted last fall, 74% of Americans think the state of the economy are mediocre or bad, while just a quarter rate them positive. A separate survey showed that 61% of Americans say the administration’s actions have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Economic Reality and Suggested Measures

The treasury secretary, Trump’s chief financial officer, recently contradicted assertions of a golden age. He noted that far from booming, some parts of the American economy “have contracted.” The manufacturing sector—a priority for the administration—seems to have shrunk for multiple consecutive months and lost around 33,000 jobs this year. Citing these challenges, the secretary urged the central bank to reduce borrowing costs—a move that could help affordability.

Reacting to widespread concern about affordability, Trump proposed a cash handout of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” excluding “the wealthy.” For many struggling Americans, this sounds like manna from heaven, but it is unlikely that Congress—concerned about huge budget deficits—will approve such a plan. This idea would likely raise government expenditure, increase interest rates, and possibly drive prices higher by injecting cash into consumers’ pockets.

Another proposed solution for cost issues centered on introducing 50-year mortgages, with the notion that this would lower housing costs. But, reality is that 50-year mortgages would do little to reduce installments—often reducing them by just $100 or $200 per month. The downside is that these loans could significantly increase the total interest borrowers pay and hinder building home value.

Blaming the Past Government and Economic Outlook

In their cost-cutting effort, the administration have once more blamed Biden for economic problems, such as rising prices. Spokespeople stated they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “addressing the prior administration’s price hikes.” These are absurd and untruthful allegations. In reality, Biden handed over a strong economy, with inflation way down, economic growth strong, and unemployment low. But, the current administration’s actions—especially import taxes—have created an economic mess, pushing up prices and slowing GDP growth.

According to Mark Zandi, lead analyst at Moody’s Analytics, numerous regions are already in recession, with their conditions worsened by Trump’s tariffs. Zandi fears that if key regions like major economies tumble into recession, the nation could face a broad economic slump. During recessions, consumers typically have reduced funds to spend, and inflation usually declines. Unfortunately, with the highly-touted affordability campaign probably ineffective to control costs, his most effective “tool” for improving living standards might prove to be pushing the nation into recession—something that hard-pressed households really can’t afford.