President Trump told Politico on Tuesday that if he could grade his own economy, he'd give himself an "A-plus" — an "A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus."
The big picture: Polls — and November's blue wave — indicate that many Americans disagree with that sentiment, even Trump's voter base, but the president has held firm to the message that his administration's economic policies have been an unqualified success.
- If Americans are feeling the strain, it's because of former President Biden and Democrats, Trump has argued.
What they're saying: "The word 'affordability — I inherited a mess," Trump told Politico's Dasha Burns. "Prices were at an all-time high when I came in; prices are coming down substantially."
Reality check: Trump has frequently claimed prices are trending lower, but prices for many goods and services have risen since he returned to the White House.
- The Consumer Price Index and the core measure that strips out food and energy costs rose 3% in the 12 months through September, the latest data available due to a lapse in reporting amid the government shutdown.
- Utility prices fell in September, but were up nearly 12% over the past year.
- A cup of coffee costs 20% more than it did in 2024, when Trump promised grocery prices would go down.
Burns told Trump about one of his supporters, who was upset about the rising costs of groceries, utilities, and running a small business.
- Trump didn't address these concerns directly, instead pointing to lower energy prices as a triumph of his administration.
- "Gasoline — they had it at $4.50, almost $5," he said. "We hit three states two days ago, $1.99 a gallon. When that happens, everything comes down."
Yes, but: The cost of filling up gasoline tanks vs. keeping the lights and heat on at home is moving in generally opposite directions, Axios' Ben German writes.
Zoom in: Trump's polling numbers reflect that Americans are struggling with rising costs under his administration.
- Approval of Trump's handling of the economy is at 36% according to the latest Gallup poll. Only 32% classified the economy as good in a CBS News/YouGov survey conducted in mid-November.
- 65% of respondents to the CBS News/YouGov survey said Trump's policies are raising food and grocery costs. Voters who judge him mainly on the economy say he is not spending enough time on it.
Trump has also more generally minimized affordability as an issue for Americans.
- In last week's Cabinet meeting, he said that affordability is a "con job" and "doesn't mean anything to anybody."
- Those comments were at odds with the week before, when he called himself the "affordability president."
By the numbers: For the past few months, incomes have been growing only slightly after accounting for inflation, according to a recent study from the JPMorgan Chase Institute.
- Growth is in a similar weak range to that seen in the early 2010s, when the economy was climbing out of a bruising recession and the labor market was struggling.
What we're watching: Facing mounting pressure over inflation at the grocery store, Trump this week ordered a sweeping investigation into food price-fixing that especially targets foreign companies.
- It represents a key tension of his tariff-driven economic policies: it's difficult to have cheap food without cheap foreign labor, imports and capital.
