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Throughout last year's race for the White House, Donald Trump wooed the electorate with promises to reduce prices starting on day one. But, after his inauguration, he seemed to pay precious little attention to affordability issues. This shifted following inflation-weary voters expressed dissatisfaction at the ballot box. Within days, his team initiated a hastily assembled effort to address living costs. Regrettably, this initiative has proven a disorganized endeavor—characterized by illogical claims, contradictions, unrealistic expectations, blame-shifting, and misleading statements.

Detached Assertions and Grocery Store Reality

Merely 48 hours after the election, Trump began his affordability drive with a poorly received statement: “Food prices are way down. Everything is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” These words from the wealthy leader—who frequently associates with fellow billionaires—revealed a lack of empathy for everyday citizens who struggle when visiting the grocery store. In effect, he dismissed their struggles as trivial, implying they were mistaken about actual costs.

His assertion that everything was “way down” was absurdly obtuse and inaccurate. How could every price be falling when his cherished tariffs were increasing costs? Recent data indicate the cost of bananas rose 6.9% over the past year, beef prices climbed almost 15%, and the cost of coffee jumped 18.9%—in part because of import taxes on Brazil’s coffee and beef. In the first three quarters, costs increased in five of the six food categories tracked by the Consumer Price Index, such as animal proteins (rising over 4%), drinks (up 2.8%), and fruits and vegetables (rising slightly).

Inconsistencies and Falsehoods in Economic Statements

Despite the evidence, Trump continues to push his big lie about lower costs. Since election day, he has claimed there is “virtually no inflation,” insisted “costs have fallen significantly,” and asserted “living is cheaper under Trump than it was under sleepy Joe Biden.” These statements ignore the fact that general costs have clearly increased after the previous administration. Currently, price growth is at a 3% annual rate, which is half again as much than the central bank’s target of 2 percent. Adding to the inaccuracies, Trump boasted that gas prices had fallen to around two dollars, despite official data show they average $3.19.

Confronted by reality and declining opinion polls, some Trump aides evidently warned that his “prices are down” message made him sound disconnected from typical Americans. Many citizens are angry about rising costs following assurances of reductions. In response, advisers suggested one quick fix: roll back some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. This sensible idea contradicted Trump’s absurd assertion that new tariffs wouldn’t raise prices for US consumers.

Proposed Fixes and Their Potential Impact

With certain taxes reduced on several food items, the administration will likely claim that he has lowered costs once those foods begin to fall in price. That would be similar to a firestarter taking credit for putting out a fire that he ignited. On another occasion, when addressing McDonald’s executives, he stated that “this is the peak period of America” and told listeners 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 cuts to nutrition assistance or rising insurance costs.

Per a recent poll conducted last fall, three-quarters of respondents believe economic conditions are fair or poor, while only 26% consider them good or excellent. Another poll showed that a majority of citizens say Trump’s policies have “made the economy worse” in the country.

Financial Truth and Suggested Steps

The treasury secretary, the president’s chief financial officer, lately contradicted 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—seems to have shrunk for multiple consecutive months and lost approximately 33,000 jobs this year. Citing these challenges, the secretary called on the central bank to cut interest rates—a move that could help affordability.

Reacting to public dismay about affordability, Trump suggested a direct payment 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 the prospects are dim that lawmakers—already alarmed about large shortfalls—will enact the proposal. This idea could raise government expenditure, push up borrowing costs, and potentially fuel inflation by putting more money into consumers’ pockets.

Another supposed fix for affordability centered on creating 50-year mortgages, based on the idea that this would reduce monthly mortgage payments. However, reality is that 50-year mortgages have minimal impact to lower monthly payments—frequently reducing them by a small amount each month. The drawback is that these mortgages could more than double the overall cost borrowers pay and hinder their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Past Government and Financial Outlook

In their cost-cutting effort, Trump and his team have again blamed the previous president for financial challenges, such as increasing costs. Spokespeople stated they “inherited a disaster from Joe Biden” and were “cleaning up the prior administration’s price hikes.” These are unfounded and inaccurate claims. Actually, the former president handed over a strong economy, with inflation way down, solid expansion, and minimal joblessness. But, Trump’s policies—particularly his tariffs—have created an economic mess, pushing up prices and slowing GDP growth.

Per Mark Zandi, lead analyst at a research firm, numerous regions are already in recession, with their conditions worsened by Trump’s tariffs. He fears that if key regions like major economies enter a downturn, the nation could slide into a widespread recession. During recessions, consumers generally possess less money to spend, and inflation usually declines. Unfortunately, given the highly-touted affordability campaign probably ineffective to hold down prices, his most effective “tool” for improving living standards might end up pushing the nation into recession—a scenario that struggling Americans cannot handle.