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Topics: Donald Trump, Cost of Living, Politics, Money, US News
Madison Burgess
Topics: Donald Trump, Cost of Living, Politics, Money, US News
Donald Trump has controversially described the US affordability crisis a 'hoax' and a 'scam' - and even some Republicans and MAGA supporters aren't happy.
The US President, 79, made the shock comments during a Cabinet meeting earlier this week on Tuesday (2 December).
He said from the Oval Office: "Our prices now for energy, for gasoline, are really low. Electricity is coming down. And when that comes down everything comes down.
"But the word affordability is a Democrat scam. They say it and then they go onto the next subject and everyone thinks 'Oh, they had lower prices'. No. They had the worst inflation in the history of our country."
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The Republican boldly continued: "Now, some people will correct me, because they always love to correct me, even though I'm right about everything, but some people like to correct me and they say, '48 years'."
Talking about costs on another occasion, Trump doubled down with: "Just about everything is down. They use the word affordability - it’s a Democrat hoax. They’re the ones who drove the prices up.
"I think affordability is the greatest con job. They look at you and they say affordability. They don’t say anything else."
He also said: "There's this fake narrative that the Democrats talk about - affordability. They just say the word, it doesn't mean anything to anybody. I inherited the worst inflation in history, there was no affordability, nobody could afford anything."
However, as per Organiser, according to a poll by research firm Public First, 46 percent of Americans say the cost of living is the worst they can remember. Importantly, 37 percent of Trump’s own 2024 voters reportedly share this view.
On top of this, Americans also said that they see the affordability crisis as Trump’s responsibility, with 46 percent saying it's his economy now and so his administration is responsible for the costs people are struggling with.
As reported by Indy100, affordability was also reportedly one of the US President's campaign promises, as he vowed to lower living costs, boost household buying power, and make essentials cheaper.
Bernie Sanders took to Twitter to react to the comments, writing: "Donald Trump says the affordability crisis is 'a con job'. Really?
"Americans can't afford their rent. They can't afford to see a doctor. They can't afford to feed their children. The real con job is thinking working people will believe that lie while they struggle to survive."
And as we say, it's not just Democrats who are unimpressed, as some MAGA fans have also taken issue.
One Twitter user penned: "What’s crazy is Trump supporters were talking about how he was gonna make stuff affordable. and now he’s saying in front of their face he doesn’t care yet they’ll probably still support him anyway."
While someone else pointed out the stats, writing: "Holy s***, 37% of TRUMP VOTERS say the cost of living is the WORST they can ever remember. Buckle up, it's getting worse."
A third agreed: "Millions of Americans struggling to pay for basic needs might disagree that affordability is a scam. It’s a reality."
And a fourth wrote: "Wild take from the guy whose whole 2024 campaign was basically: “Everything costs more!” Turns out affordability is only a scam when he’s asked to do something about it."
Tyla has contacted the White House for comment.