Trump Shifts to the Economy
Continuing his Affordability Tour, Donald Trump is still refining the message on his administration’s efforts to lift the economic boat for all Americans.
Amidst all the upheaval in and about Minnesota, President Donald Trump headed to neighboring Iowa to refocus on the economy and urge people to keep Congress in Republican hands come November. The Iowa visit is part of his national Affordability Tour.
“Twelve months ago, Joe Biden handed us a mess,” Trump told the crowd. “But today, just after one year of President Trump, our economy is booming, incomes are rising, investment is soaring, inflation has been defeated, our border is closed.”
Affordability and the overall economy remain at the forefront of most Americans’ minds these days. It’s become “part of the lexicon,” said pollster Frank Lutz. “That’s the word Americans use: ‘I can’t afford fill-in-the-blank.’”
Trump has struggled to find the best messaging on the economy, usually hitting two overarching points: Affordability is a Democrat hoax, and he’s ushered in the best economy the nation has ever seen. He didn’t use the “hoax” or “con job” line in Iowa, but as I quoted above, he did oversell his work a bit.
To be sure, the Democrats’ focus on affordability is a hoax, but that’s not quite how Trump puts it. Democrats, led by Joe Biden’s autopen, created the affordability problem in 2021. They lit the wildfire of inflation that still burns a few embers today. For them to blame Trump or treat this as his problem is the worst sort of gaslighting, but he’s got to be clearer about what he means by “hoax.” If voters think he’s dismissing the issue, they won’t believe him.
Trump’s economy has strong points (like GDP, the stock market, and gas prices), but it also has weak points (like the jobs market and housing), and virtually no one actually feels it’s roaring at a record pace. In fact, Trump’s economic approval ratings are negative, and polls show that most Americans think the economy is “not good.” That’s inaccurate, too, thanks to Leftmedia reporting, but that doesn’t mean Trump can just call it the “best” and immediately change minds. Biden tried that already, and it utterly failed.
“The economy is good,” Trump said before departing for Iowa. “It’s all good. Prices are coming way down, and we have a lot of very positive news.” The inflation rate is coming down, not prices (with a few exceptions, like eggs and gas), so stealing Biden’s line isn’t going to work for Trump, either.
Still, I don’t mean to dump a bucket of ice water on the president. He didn’t create the economic malaise; Biden did. And it’s going to take time to right the ship. He should say so, honestly. Confirming to people that he’s working to address the problems they see is vastly superior to telling them they don’t see what they plainly do see.
One big way to tout Trump’s real success is taxes. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made permanent the tax cuts from Trump’s first term. He should loudly trumpet that, including the fact that zero Democrats voted for it either time. As of two days ago, Americans have already started filing their 2025 tax returns, and it should be a “gigantic refund year,” according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “Millions of Americans may see the largest tax refunds of their lives in 2026. And as withholdings are adjusted, millions will take home bigger paychecks every month this year.”
According to Newsweek, “The Tax Foundation, a think tank, estimated that the average refund check will be $3,800. That’s an increase from $3,052 for the 2024 tax year and $3,004 for the 2023 tax year.”
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith suggested even more. “Families can expect an average of $1,000 more in their refund compared to last year,” the Missouri Republican said in a statement. “For a family with two kids making $73,000, they will have zero tax liability. Bigger refunds mean more money to cover groceries, doctors’ bills, school supplies and summer activities — all the essentials that became unaffordable under Joe Biden.”
That is a message Trump should amplify.
Fortunately, he did in Iowa: “Thanks to our tax cuts, millions of Americans will soon receive record-setting tax refunds — an average of more than $1,000.”
He’s also pushing another good message: Republicans must win in November, or Democrats may do it all over again. “I’m here because I love Iowa, but I’m here because we’re starting the campaign to win the midterms,” the president said. “We can never forget what that group of morons did to this country. We can never forget, and we’ve got to win.” Part of that push will be the Republican National Committee’s first-ever midterm convention, which will serve to highlight GOP achievements.
Affordability is important, but there are also a lot of other issues that will determine the results in November.
