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During last year's presidential campaign, Donald Trump courted voters with pledges to reduce prices starting on day one. But, after he assumed office, he seemed to pay precious little focus to affordability issues. All that changed following inflation-weary voters expressed dissatisfaction at the polls. Shortly thereafter, the Trump administration initiated a slapdash effort to tackle affordability. Regrettably, the drive has proven a disorganized endeavor—filled with illogical claims, inconsistencies, magical thinking, scapegoating, and misleading statements.

Detached Assertions and Supermarket Reality

Merely 48 hours after the election, the president began his cost-reduction push with a poorly received remark: “Food prices are way down. All items is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” This comment from billionaire Trump—who frequently associates with fellow billionaires—demonstrated utter contempt for millions of Americans facing difficulties every time they go supermarkets. Essentially, he dismissed their concerns as trivial, suggesting they had it wrong about price levels.

This statement that everything was “way down” proved absurdly obtuse and inaccurate. How could all costs be falling when his cherished tariffs were increasing costs? Official statistics indicate the cost of bananas increased 6.9% over the past year, the price of beef climbed 14.7%, and coffee prices surged 18.9%—in part due to import taxes on Brazil’s coffee and beef. In the first three quarters, prices rose in five of the six main grocery groups monitored by the Consumer Price Index, such as meats, poultry, and fish (up 4.5%), drinks (increasing nearly 3%), and produce (rising slightly).

Contradictions and Falsehoods in Economic Statements

Despite these numbers, Trump continues to push his big lie about affordability. Since election day, he has stated there is “almost no price increases,” declared “prices are way down,” and asserted “it is far less expensive under Trump than it was under sleepy Joe Biden.” Such remarks ignore the reality that prices overall have unarguably risen since Biden left office. At present, price growth is at a 3% annual rate, which is half again as much than the Federal Reserve’s target of 2 percent. Adding to the inaccuracies, he boasted that fuel costs had fallen to around two dollars, even though official data show they are over three dollars.

Confronted by reality and lower approval ratings, advisers evidently cautioned that his “costs are falling” message portrayed him as disconnected from ordinary people. A lot of voters are angry about prices continuing to climb following promises of reductions. As a result, advisers suggested a simple solution: reduce certain import taxes. The logical move contradicted Trump’s absurd assertion that new tariffs would not increase costs for US consumers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Possible Impact

With certain taxes reduced on coffee, beef, tomatoes, and bananas, Trump will likely claim that he has lowered costs once those foods start declining in price. That would be similar to a firestarter taking credit for extinguishing a fire that he ignited. In another instance, when addressing McDonald’s executives, he stated 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 who are struggling—especially when many risk losing food stamps or rising insurance costs.

Per a survey from October, 74% of Americans think economic conditions are mediocre or bad, while just a quarter consider them good or excellent. Another poll found that a majority of citizens feel Trump’s policies have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Financial Reality and Suggested Measures

The treasury secretary, the president’s chief financial officer, lately contradicted assertions of a prosperous era. He noted that far from booming, some parts of the US economy “have contracted.” The manufacturing sector—a priority for the administration—seems to have shrunk for eight months in a row and shed around tens of thousands of positions since January. Citing this weakness, Bessent called on the Federal Reserve to reduce borrowing costs—an action that could help affordability.

In response to public dismay about affordability, Trump suggested a cash handout of “a payout of at least $2,000 a person” not for “the wealthy.” To numerous households in need, this sounds like a financial lifeline, but it is unlikely that lawmakers—already alarmed about large shortfalls—will enact the proposal. This idea would likely raise government expenditure, push up borrowing costs, and potentially fuel inflation by putting more money into the economy.

A further proposed solution for affordability involved introducing 50-year mortgages, with the notion that this would lower housing costs. But, the truth is that 50-year mortgages have minimal impact to reduce installments—often reducing them by just $100 or $200 per month. The drawback is that these mortgages could more than double the overall cost borrowers pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Previous Administration and Financial Outlook

In their cost-cutting effort, the administration have again blamed Biden for financial challenges, including increasing costs. Spokespeople claimed they “inherited a disaster from Joe Biden” and were “cleaning up the prior administration’s price hikes.” This is unfounded and untruthful allegations. In reality, Biden handed over a robust economic situation, with inflation way down, economic growth strong, and minimal joblessness. But, the current administration’s actions—especially import taxes—have resulted in an economic mess, driving costs higher and reducing economic output.

Per Mark Zandi, lead analyst at a research firm, 22 states are already in recession, with their economies damaged by the administration’s trade policies. Zandi fears that if key regions such as major economies enter a downturn, the US could face a widespread recession. In downturns, people typically have less money to spend, and price increases often falls. Unfortunately, given the highly-touted cost initiative likely to do little to control costs, his primary method for achieving increased affordability might end up triggering an economic contraction—something that struggling Americans really can’t afford.