{"id":2525990,"date":"2025-12-29T07:26:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T12:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trumps-affordability-conundrum\/"},"modified":"2025-12-29T07:29:25","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T12:29:25","slug":"trumps-affordability-conundrum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trumps-affordability-conundrum\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump&#8217;s affordability conundrum"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">6<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrumps-affordability-conundrum%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2525990&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>President Trump has recently made affordability the centerpiece of his messaging, acknowledging lingering inflation as a political threat as he and Vice President JD Vance tour on the issue. The article argues that, as incumbents, Trump and allies risk appearing to shirk duty if they blame past administrations for current higher prices, and that claims inflation is easing may seem out of touch until consumers actually see lower prices. Polling shows many Americans (74% in one Republican firm&#8217;s survey) want <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bidenflation-producer-price-index-skyrockets-11-3-in-june\/\" title=\"...flation: Producer-... Index Skyrockets 11.3% in June\">outright price declines<\/a> before accepting inflation is controlled, and public skepticism of official data coudl blunt the impact of favorable statistics. Trump&#8217;s rhetoric &#8211; calling affordability a &#8220;hoax&#8221; &#8211; can alienate swing voters,and his tariff policies have given opponents an easy line to link his administration to higher costs. The piece also notes uncertainty about Trump&#8217;s choice for the next Federal Reserve chair and whether inflation control will be prioritized, while Democrats may politically benefit from persistent affordability concerns. the article concludes that combating the affordability narrative is a tough political and economic challenge that could hurt Republicans in next year&#8217;s midterms.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Trump&rsquo;s affordability conundrum<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2453951\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> has <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/economy\/4362763\/trump-midterm-elections-pricing-despite-calling-affordability-dead-issue\/\">belatedly recognized<\/a> the threat the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3920188\/inflation-affordability-loom-midterm-elections\/\">lingering aftershocks of inflation<\/a> pose to his second term and Republican congressional majorities, but it won&rsquo;t be easy to wrest control of the affordability narrative back from the Democrats.<\/p>\n<p>Trump devoted a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3925478\/trump-economy-preview-2026-elections\/\">pre-Christmas prime-time address<\/a> from the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/white-house\/\">White House<\/a> to the most important issue of next year&rsquo;s midterm elections as he and Vice President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jd-vance\/\">JD Vance<\/a> embarked on a multistate affordability tour.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4356876\/netanyahu-mar-a-lago-meeting-trump-gaza-peace-deal-progress\/\">Netanyahu goes to Mar-a-Lago as Trump ups pressure for Gaza peace deal progress<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/4363286\/trump-peace-deal-ukraine-very-close\/\">Trump lauds peace talks with Zelensky at Mar-a-Lago, deal is &#8216;very close&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4356688\/trump-meets-zelensky-mar-a-lago-peace-talks-critical-stage\/\">Trump meets Zelensky on home turf as <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >peace talks hit critical stage<\/a><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>But now that Trump and Vance are incumbents, they run the risk that any arguments they make for who originally caused the current <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/inflation\/\">wave of inflation<\/a> &mdash;&nbsp;which ran at a 41-year high under former President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\/\">Joe Biden<\/a> and his replacement as the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, former Vice President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kamala-harris\/\">Kamala Harris<\/a> &mdash;&nbsp;will come across to voters as blame-shifting and accountability-dodging.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3292730\/all-executive-orders-actions-trump-first-day\/\">FULL LIST OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS, ACTIONS, AND PROCLAMATIONS TRUMP HAS MADE AS PRESIDENT<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Worse, any arguments Trump and Vance make that things are improving could be seen as out of touch with economic reality until public perceptions about the cost of living improve.<\/p>\n<p>A recent poll by Echelon Insights, a Republican firm, found that 74% would only accept a decline in prices as proof that inflation was finally under control. Many Trump 2024 voters likely cast their ballots for him hoping pre-pandemic price levels would return.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Prices on some goods and services, like gasoline, can and have come down. But the consumer price index isn&rsquo;t <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/3920028\/trump-lower-prices-promise-voter-economic-outlook\/\">going to decline broadly<\/a> absent other serious economic problems.<\/p>\n<p>Inflation-induced price increases are cumulative. As Biden and Harris quickly discovered, a drop in the rate of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/corporate-media-prep-to-blame-bidenflation-on-trump-admin-2-0\/\" title=\"Corporate Media Prep To Blame ...flation On ... Admin 2.0\">inflation didn&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t immediately improve public perceptions of the economy because things were still generally more expensive than they had been in 2020. The Trump administration faces this problem now even if <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3925112\/inflation-dropped-november-report-delayed-shutdown\/\">good news on inflation continues<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Not everyone will believe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/oil-stays-near-multi-month-lows-on-demand-worries\/\" title=\"Oil stays near multi-month lows on demand worries\">positive economic data<\/a> on inflation or other important metrics even if such reports persist. Trump himself has cast doubt on government statistics before. It is now more socially and politically acceptable for <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/2025\/12\/26\/new_govt_inflation_amp_gdp_figures_are_worthless_681479.html\">others to express skepticism<\/a> <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/economy\/u-s-says-inflation-slowed-last-month-but-data-may-be-distorted-and-americans-arent-feeling-it\">about these numbers<\/a> with Trump in charge of the government.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Media outlets that <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/politics\/2023\/2\/21\/23603432\/joe-biden-economy-approval-rating\">tried to spin<\/a> the Biden economy as being <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/538\/voters-bidens-economy\/story?id=109749510\">better than<\/a> voters believed <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/economy\/u-s-says-inflation-slowed-last-month-but-data-may-be-distorted-and-americans-arent-feeling-it\">won&rsquo;t tell similar stories<\/a> under Trump. The president and his allies will have to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/2025\/12\/26\/trumps_tax_cuts_amp_trade_policy_fuel_blowout_gdp_growth_681487.html\">make the case themselves<\/a>, which can, in turn, alienate voters who don&rsquo;t feel the economic progress yet.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4363059\/mamdani-musk-fdny-chief-bonsignore\/\">MANDANI HITS BACK AT MUSK AFTER CLAIM &lsquo;PEOPLE WILL DIE&rsquo; OVER MAYOR-ELECT&rsquo;S FDNY PICK<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Pretty much anything else Trump can focus on ahead of the midterm elections could be seen as a distraction from the economy. And if Republicans lose control of Congress, or even just the House, in November, he will be extremely limited in what he can do on domestic issues for the remainder of his time in office.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>All this contributes to why Trump is frustrated by inflation becoming a political liability for him like it once was for Biden and Harris, leading him to sometimes call it the &ldquo;affordability hoax.&rdquo; This makes some voters feel he does not take inflation seriously or believe the high cost of living really exists.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>When Trump refers to something as a &ldquo;hoax,&rdquo; whether it is affordability, Jeffrey Epstein, or Russia, he is usually not referring to the underlying issue at hand but its use by the Democrats as a cudgel against him (though the first-term Trump-Russia investigations arguably had some real-world effects on his dealings with Russia). But that&rsquo;s not always how swing voters, in particular, see such rhetoric.<\/p>\n<p>There is <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/how-united-states-is-eating-trumps-tariffs-2025-10-13\/\">considerable debate<\/a> about how much impact Trump&rsquo;s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tariffs\/\">tariffs<\/a> have had on prices in general. They have, at a minimum, made it easier to blame his policies for things being more expensive, and are at a maximum contributing to upward pressure on prices.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, Trump is going to appoint a new <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/federal-reserve\/\">Federal Reserve<\/a> chairman when <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jerome-powell\/\">Jerome Powell<\/a>&rsquo;s term expires next year. It is not clear that inflation control will be his highest priority when he picks Powell&rsquo;s successor or that he will work as well with a tight-money chairman as Ronald Reagan did with Paul Volcker during the resolution of the last inflation crisis more than 40 years ago.<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3916711\/top-economic-policy-stories-in-2025\/\"><strong>THE TOP ECONOMIC POLICY DEVELOPMENTS OF 2025 THAT WILL SHAPE THE YEARS TO COME<\/strong><\/a><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Democrats could reap the electoral benefits of persistent inflation they helped create despite <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/07\/26\/business\/larry-summers-biden-inflation\">warnings from allied economists<\/a> and without showing any appreciation for its monetary and fiscal causes. Throughout the Biden administration, Democrats mostly treated inflation as some unfortunate side effect of COVID-19 or supply-chain bottlenecks that Republicans were exploiting for cynical purposes. Today, many Democratic voters believe that electing socialist mayors to major cities that house much of the financial sector is a good way to help keep the cost of living down.<\/p>\n<p>It is a difficult political and economic battle for Trump, who, like other incumbents before him, risks paying the price at the ballot box.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump&#8217;s affordability challenge<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2659,"featured_media":2525991,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25354141571363.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[18297,58959,9168,4344,3634],"class_list":["post-2525990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-affordability","tag-cost-of-living-2","tag-economy","tag-housing","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/AP25354141571363.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2525990"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525990\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2525994,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2525990\/revisions\/2525994"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2525991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2525990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2525990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2525990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}