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During last year's race for the White House, the former president wooed the electorate with promises to reduce prices immediately upon taking office. However, after he assumed office, there was minimal focus to the cost of living. This shifted after inflation-weary citizens delivered a rebuke at the ballot box. Within days, his team initiated a hastily assembled effort to address living costs. Regrettably, the drive has proven a hot mess—filled with illogical claims, inconsistencies, unrealistic expectations, scapegoating, and Trumpian dishonesty.

Out-of-Touch Claims and Grocery Store Truth

Just two days after the election, the president began his cost-reduction push with a disastrous statement: “Our groceries are way down. All items is way down… So I don’t want to hear about affordability.” These words from billionaire Trump—who frequently mingles with other ultra-rich individuals—revealed a lack of empathy for everyday citizens facing difficulties when visiting the grocery store. Essentially, he ignored their concerns as unimportant, implying they were mistaken about actual costs.

His assertion that everything was “way down” was highly misleading and dishonest. In what way could all costs be decreasing when his cherished tariffs were increasing prices? Official statistics indicate the cost of bananas rose nearly 7% over the past year, beef prices climbed almost 15%, and coffee prices jumped 18.9%—in part due to punitive tariffs applied to Brazilian products. In the first three quarters, prices rose in five of the six food categories tracked by the Consumer Price Index, including meats, poultry, and fish (up 4.5%), drinks (increasing nearly 3%), and produce (rising slightly).

Inconsistencies and Inaccuracies in Financial Statements

Despite these numbers, Trump continues to push his misleading narrative about affordability. Since election day, he has stated there is “almost no price increases,” insisted “prices are way down,” and argued “it is far less expensive under Trump than it was under sleepy Joe Biden.” Such remarks contradict the fact that prices overall have clearly increased since Biden left office. At present, price growth is running at a 3% annual rate, which is 50% higher than the central bank’s 2% goal. In another falsehood, he boasted that gas prices had fallen to nearly $2 a gallon, despite government figures show they are over three dollars.

Faced with actual conditions and lower approval ratings, some Trump aides apparently cautioned that his “costs are falling” rhetoric made him sound dangerously out of touch from ordinary people. A lot of voters are angry about rising costs after assurances of decreases. As a result, aides proposed a simple solution: reduce some of Trump’s beloved tariffs. The logical move contradicted Trump’s absurd assertion that new tariffs wouldn’t raise prices for American shoppers.

Suggested Fixes and Their Possible Effects

With certain taxes reduced on several food items, Trump will likely claim that he has lowered costs once those foods begin to fall in price. That would be like an arsonist boasting for extinguishing a fire that he ignited. In another instance, while speaking McDonald’s executives, he stated that “this is the peak period of America” and told listeners that “costs are decreasing and all of that stuff.” These comments are easy for a wealthy individual to make, but seem insincere to countless households who are struggling—especially when many face cuts to nutrition assistance or rising insurance costs.

Per a survey from October, 74% of Americans think the state of the economy are fair or poor, while just a quarter consider them good or excellent. A separate survey showed that 61% of Americans feel Trump’s policies have “worsened economic conditions” in the country.

Financial Truth and Suggested Measures

Scott Bessent, the president’s chief financial officer, recently disputed assertions of a prosperous era. He stated that instead of thriving, certain sectors of the US economy “have contracted.” The manufacturing sector—which Trump vowed to save—appears to have contracted for multiple consecutive months and shed approximately tens of thousands of positions since January. Pointing to these challenges, Bessent urged the Federal Reserve to reduce borrowing costs—a move that could help affordability.

In response to public dismay about living costs, Trump suggested a direct payment of “a dividend of at least $2,000 a person” excluding “high income people.” To numerous struggling Americans, this sounds like manna from heaven, but the prospects are dim that lawmakers—concerned about huge budget deficits—will approve such a plan. The scheme could increase federal spending, increase interest rates, and potentially drive prices higher by putting more money into consumers’ pockets.

Another proposed solution for affordability involved introducing half-century home loans, with the notion that this would reduce monthly mortgage payments. However, reality is that 50-year mortgages would do little to lower monthly payments—frequently cutting them by a small amount each month. The drawback is that these mortgages could significantly increase the overall cost borrowers pay and slow their accumulation of equity.

Blaming the Previous Administration and Economic Outlook

In their affordability campaign, the administration have again blamed Biden for financial challenges, such as increasing costs. Officials claimed they “faced a mess from Joe Biden” and were “addressing Biden’s inflation.” This is unfounded and inaccurate claims. In reality, the former president left a strong economy, with low price growth, solid expansion, and unemployment low. But, the current administration’s actions—especially import taxes—have created an difficult situation, pushing up prices and reducing economic output.

Per an economist, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, 22 states are experiencing economic decline, with their economies damaged by Trump’s tariffs. He worries that if key regions such as major economies enter a downturn, the US could slide into a widespread recession. During recessions, people generally possess less money to spend, and inflation usually declines. Unfortunately, given the highly-touted affordability campaign likely to do little to hold down prices, his primary method for improving living standards might end up pushing the nation into recession—something that hard-pressed households cannot handle.