President Trump just crowned his second administration’s economic performance with an astonishing “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus” grade, setting the stage for his trip to Pennsylvania this week to sell his success on inflation, according to The Hill. That is a huge stamp of approval, but it comes right when the administration is facing some serious political heat regarding Americans’ wallets.
You’d think an economy scoring that high would be sailing smoothly, but that doesn’t seem to be the case on the ground for most consumers. Despite the president’s belief that prices are dropping substantially, Americans are still deeply frustrated that costs remain stubbornly high. This frustration is proving to be a massive political liability.
Last month’s off-year elections delivered a really loud warning sign for Republicans. Democrats actually managed to win some critical races across the country, including the Zohran Mamdani NYC mayoral win, focusing on the affordability issue. This was supposed to be President Trump’s major strength during his 2024 campaign, but it is now plaguing his administration.
It’s a bad look when the official grade is five pluses, but the voters are still feeling squeezed every time they hit the grocery store
The president made these confident comments during an interview. He was actually prompted by a supporter who had given him a generous “A-plus-plus” overall grade but pointed out that not enough had been done to address the high costs of goods. President Trump didn’t hesitate to defend his administration’s record, claiming he walked into a terrible situation when he took office.
“I inherited a total mess,” he said. He insisted that prices were at an all-time high when he came in, and now, he claims, they are “coming down substantially.” He strongly believes that the turnaround over the last ten months has been “amazing.” He specifically pointed to energy costs as the main driver of this economic improvement. When fuel costs drop, the price of transporting everything else you buy, from milk to new gadgets, should theoretically follow suit.
The president gave some very concrete examples involving gasoline prices to back up his claims. He recalled that not long ago, gas prices were sitting at $4.50 or almost $5.00 a gallon, and in some states, they were even hitting $6.00. He is now seeing much lower numbers across the country. “We hit, uh, three states two days ago, $1.99 a gallon. When that happens, everything comes down,” he explained.
All this context leads up to President Trump’s travel plans to Scranton, Pennsylvania, specifically to tout his efforts to bring costs down directly to the public. It’s clear that the president is trying his best to highlight his economic performance, giving himself the highest possible rating imaginable. While he never once used the word affordability on social media, he now suddenly can’t stop talking about it. Now he just needs to convince the rest of America that their wallets reflect that same “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus” reality.
Published: Dec 9, 2025 02:00 pm