The one thing that could finally sink Trump

For years, voters believed that, despite all of Trump’s chaos and controversies, he’d still do a good job with the economy.

No longer. Voters are furious about high prices.

Trump’s economic approval numbers have hit new lows in all major polls: CNBC, Quinnipiac, Pew, Economist/YouGov.

Trump’s tariffs have caused prices to soar, as has his massive push to deport unauthorized immigrant workers. And Affordable Care Act enrollees are now learning about double-digit increases in their payments starting January 1st, due to Trump’s refusal to extend ACA subsidies.

So, today’s Office Hours discussion question: Will higher prices sink Trump (along with Trump Republicans running for reelection in next year’s midterms)?

I’ve heard several views:

1. Yes. He was reelected mainly because voters thought he’d bring prices down. Yet just the opposite is occurring. He won’t be able to weasel out of this, nor will his lapdogs in the Republican Party. If Dems focus on the economy, they’ll win overwhelmingly next year.

2. Yes, but with caveats. While it’s clear that Trump’s policies — on tariffs, immigration, agriculture, and health care — are causing prices to rise, these are all complicated issues, and Trump is an expert at sowing confusion and blaming his opponents. Dems need to clearly explain the connections between his policies and rising prices.

3. Not really. While the economy is important to voters, so are the other issues Trump is focused on: immigration, crime, and national defense. Most polls still show Trump is more popular among the public now than he was at this point in his first term. Moreover, he dominates the media. The Dems have no spokesperson anywhere near as charismatic.

4. Not at all. History shows that economic stresses can cause a public to defer to a strongman more than they’d normally do. Trump is adept at acting as if he’s in charge. The larger the economic crisis, the more voters will defer to him. In fact, he’ll use an economic crisis to expand his power. Besides, the public’s view of Democrats and the Democratic Party is even worse than its view of Trump.

What do you think?

Robert Reich is a professor at Berkeley and was secretary of labor under Bill Clinton. You can find his writing at https://robertreich.substack.com/.