Trump Campaigned on Affordability. Now He’s Calling the Idea a ‘Con Job.’
In the latest edition of *The Atlantic Daily*, President Donald Trump finds himself navigating a turbulent economic landscape as he grapples with rising inflation and a housing crisis that have left many Americans feeling financially strained. During a recent Cabinet meeting, Trump dismissed the concept of “affordability,” labeling it a “Democrat scam” intended to manipulate public sentiment. This rhetoric comes as a significant portion of the American populace, according to a Fox News poll, holds Trump accountable for the current economic woes, with 46% of respondents expressing that the cost of living is at an all-time high and attributing it to his policies. The stark contrast between Trump’s optimistic proclamations about making America “great again” and the harsh realities of a weakening dollar and stagnant wages underscores the growing disconnect between his administration’s narrative and the lived experiences of voters.
As Trump attempts to address voter frustration, he has employed a mix of strategies, oscillating between blaming Democrats for economic challenges and adopting their language to appeal to constituents. For instance, he recently acknowledged the proposals of New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani, suggesting that their ideas on affordability align. Yet, just days later, he reverted to skepticism about the term itself, claiming it holds no real meaning. This inconsistency reflects a broader challenge for Trump as he prepares for a national tour aimed at reassuring voters about the economy: the urgency of addressing affordability resonates with voters, especially as Democrats leverage this issue to regain political ground in upcoming elections. The political implications of Trump’s economic messaging are profound, as history shows that a president’s economic approval can significantly influence their party’s fortunes, especially in midterm elections.
As Trump’s approval ratings continue to slip, moving from 47% to 36% within ten months of his presidency, the pressure mounts. Political experts suggest that if Trump fails to connect his administration’s optimistic outlook with the economic realities faced by everyday Americans, he risks repeating the fate of former President George H.W. Bush, who lost his reelection bid partly due to a similar disconnect with the electorate over economic issues. With the midterms approaching, Trump’s ability to navigate the complexities of affordability and economic sentiment will be crucial not just for his political survival, but also for the future of the Republican Party as they seek to address the concerns of a disillusioned electorate.
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President Donald Trump has promised not only that America will be “great again” but also that it will be “
healthy again
,” “
wealthy again
,” “
beautiful again
,” and—crucially—“
affordable again
.” Now, as the country faces persistent inflation, a housing crisis, and rising prices on consumer goods, he claims that affordability is nothing more than a “con job,” an opportunistic buzzword leveraged by a rival party. “The word
affordability
is a Democrat scam,”
he said
during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Incoming presidents don’t get to pick the economy they inherit, but they can only credibly blame their predecessors for so long. In a Fox News
poll
last month, almost twice as many respondents said that Trump, not Joe Biden, is responsible for current economic conditions. Per new
polling
from
Politico
, 46 percent of Americans say the cost of living in the United States is the worst they can remember it being, and 46 percent think Trump is to blame for those high costs. The trend isn’t entirely new; voters have blamed Trump for the economy
throughout the year
. As frustration persists, the president is pointing fingers at the Democrats, but he can’t dispute the data.
Americans now face both a
weakening dollar
and stagnant income levels. Trump’s surprise implementation of
punitive tariffs
this summer ended up making all sorts of goods, including clothing and
beef
, more expensive. Meanwhile, millions have left the country (voluntarily or not) amid the administration’s crackdown on immigration, according to the
Department of Homeland Security’s estimates
. This exodus, combined with a reduction in newcomers, has the potential to
harm local economies
.
Trump has tried conflicting strategies to deal with voter frustration. He has a tendency to invoke the previous administration when things go wrong—at the start of his term, he said Biden’s name an
average of six times a day
, often to fault him for the economy or immigration issues. But during a recent meeting with New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani, the president appeared to check his impulse to vilify Dems, beaming over Mamdani’s proposals to fix the cost-of-living crisis. “Some of his ideas really are the same ideas I have,”
Trump said
: “The new word is
affordability
.”
About a week later, he dubbed himself the
“AFFORDABILITY PRESIDENT”
on Truth Social. But again, that only lasted so long:
Affordability
actually “doesn’t mean anything to anybody,” he said on Tuesday. Next week, he’ll pivot once more as he sets off on a
national tour
to assuage voters’ concerns about the economy and inflation.
Sentiments about a president’s approach to the economy usually carry over to the incumbent party—and at the moment, Trump’s
relative unpopularity is Democrats’ gain
. The party has jumped at the chance to pummel Trump on affordability, which proved to be a winning issue in recent elections: The cost-of-living rhetoric that catapulted Mamdani to victory in New York City
also helped two other Democrats
win important races last month. The political scientist Lynn Vavreck told me yesterday that when Trump downplays the issue, he risks repeating some of what led to George H. W. Bush’s downfall in 1992: Bush lost that election to Bill Clinton in large part because his optimism about the economy failed to connect with voters’ reality. Biden suffered from a similar disconnect—and the same problem is creeping up on Trump ahead of the midterms.
Approval ratings for a president’s first year in a new term often benefit from what the economic historian
Robert J. Gordon
calls the “honeymoon effect”—a bump that isn’t neatly explained by anything other than voters’ inclination to give leaders time to warm up. But by the time midterm season rolls around, voters tend to be less forgiving. Ten months into Trump’s presidency, the polling is starting to track a similar pattern: His approval
ratings
started at 47 percent and have since slipped to 36 percent (thanks to
more than just affordability
). Trump has been known to bounce back. But if the honeymoon is ending, that’s one thing he can’t blame Biden for.
Related:
Derek Thompson on the affordability curse
Trump doesn’t understand inflation, James Surowiecki argues.
Here are three new stories from
The Atlantic
:
The vaccine guardrails are gone.
Tom Nichols: Pete Hegseth’s weak excuses
What if our ancestors didn’t feel anything like we do?
Today’s News
The CDC’s
Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 8–3
to end the long-standing recommendation that all newborns receive a hepatitis-B shot at birth. For babies born to a virus-negative mother, parents can decide “when or if” to vaccinate; the panel recommends that the first dose be given two months after birth if parents choose to vaccinate.
The
2026 World Cup draw
took place at the Kennedy Center, where President Donald Trump was awarded the first-ever FIFA Peace Prize.
The Supreme Court
agreed to decide whether Trump’s effort to end birthright citizenship
is constitutional; arguments are expected to begin in April, and a decision is expected by late June.
Dispatches
The Books Briefing
:
This year’s
Atlantic
10—
our list of the best books of 2025
—is an attempt to celebrate writing that “distinguishes itself as worth reading and remembering for years to come,” Emma Sarappo writes.
But a short list can’t include all of our personal favorites
.
Explore all of our newsletters here.
Evening Read
Illustration by Ben Kothe / The Atlantic
No NFL Game Has Ever Ended in a Score of 36–23
By Josh Levin
There was no good reason to be thinking about NFL history when the Dallas Cowboys took on the Las Vegas Raiders a couple of weeks ago. Neither team had a winning record at the time, and the score was never close after halftime. But as the game stretched on that Monday night, the sportswriter and
video maker
Jon Bois sensed that something unprecedented could be afoot. “I glanced up and realized 36–23 was very much in play,” he told me.
Bois is the mind behind “Scorigami,” a term
he defines
as “the act, and art, of producing a final score in a football game that has never happened before.”
Read the full article.
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