University of Kwazulu-Natal

Trump Administration Policies Economic Crisis In The Making Damning

Bonisiwe Shabane
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trump administration policies economic crisis in the making damning

WASHINGTON − President Donald Trump delivered a forceful defense of his first 11 months in office during a primetime address from the White House, pointing the finger at Democrats for Americans' economic anxieties in... "Boy, are we making progress," Trump said Dec. 17 in a speech focused heavily on affordability, which has increasingly bedeviled his administration and threatens his party's electoral chances next year. Trump blamed the problem on his White House predecessor and immigrants without legal status as polls shows Americans increasingly losing confidence in his economic stewardship. The president's brief address − it clocked in at under 20 minutes − often looked backward as he mentioned former President Joe Biden seven times. Trump said that he “inherited a mess,” and that under the Biden administration, life became “unaffordable for millions and millions of Americans."

"This happened during a Democrat administration, and it's when we first began hearing the word affordability," Trump said in comments from the White House Diplomatic Room, which was adorned with Christmas decorations. WASHINGTON — For all of President Trump’s promises of an economic “golden age,” a spate of weak indicators last week told a potentially worrisome story as the effects of his policies are coming into... Job gains are dwindling. Inflation is ticking upward. Growth has slowed compared with last year. More than six months into his term, Trump’s blitz of tariff hikes and his new tax-and-spending bill have remodeled America’s trading, manufacturing, energy and tax systems to his liking.

He’s eager to take credit for any perceived wins and is hunting for someone else to blame if the financial situation starts to totter. But as of now, this is not the boom the Republican president promised, and his ability to blame his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, for any economic challenges has faded as the world economy hangs... When Friday’s monthly jobs report turned out to be decidedly bleak, Trump ignored the warnings in the data and fired the head of the agency that produces the report. President Trump delivers remarks during an event at Mount Airy Casino Resort on Tuesday in Mount Pocono, Pa. Trump discussed his administration's economic agenda and its efforts to lower the cost of living. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

President Trump spent the week making a bold case about a booming U.S. economy with even better times ahead, as his economic policies kick in. The problem for Trump is that polls show a wide swath of Americans aren't feeling that optimism yet — and in his initial attempts at addressing the cost of living, he called the affordability... Hoping to tackle the messaging disconnect, the White House rolled out a $12 billion farmer aid package and sent Trump to Pennsylvania this week to make his case. Trump has frequently shown himself a strong economic messenger — winning reelection in 2024 by lambasting Joe Biden's economy. But one year into his presidency, Trump is struggling to convince Americans that the economic pain they see in their cost-of-living expenses isn't real.

In part, the president's whiplash messaging could stem from his struggle to portray his own economy as less than perfect. Senior Teaching Fellow in Economics, Lancaster University John Whittaker does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Lancaster University provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation UK. Donald Trump set a deadline of July 9 2025 for trade deals to be made before he hits some of the world’s biggest economies with his controversial tariffs. It’s impossible to predict what will happen on the day, but it is already clear that his economic policies are damaging American interests.

Just look at the state of US government debt for example. Currently it stands at US$36 trillion (£26 trillion). And with total economic output (GDP) worth US$29 trillion per year, that debt is 123% of GDP, the highest it has been since 1946. It’s now unmistakably President Donald Trump’s economy, and after new tariff hikes on Thursday the economic data began to tell a worrisome story about job growth is slowing and inflationary pressures bubbling up. (AP Video by Nathan Ellgren) President Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One at Lehigh Valley International Airport, Friday, Aug.

1, 2025, in Allentown, Pa. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) Former President Joe Biden speaks during the National Bar Association’s 100th Annual Awards Gala in Chicago, Thursday, July 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) WASHINGTON (AP) — For all of President Donald Trump’s promises of an economic “golden age,” a spate of weak indicators this week told a potentially worrisome story as the impacts of his policies are...

Job gains are dwindling. Inflation is ticking upward. Growth has slowed compared with last year. President Donald Trump swept into office with a bold plan to remake America’s economy. But the realities of a persistent affordability crisis, low favorability ratings and biting election losses for his Republican party are forcing him to remake his plan on the fly. Although still in the early stages, Trump’s Plan B appears to be a spaghetti-on-the-wall strategy that includes $2,000 tariff rebate checks, 50-year and portable mortgages and lower tariffs on common grocery items.

Each tactic comes with significant question marks – and some are so radical economists fear they could squeeze Americans’ finances even more. The original Trump economic plan was based on three bold assumptions: For the plan to come to fruition, all three parts had to work perfectly. That’s because each part relied on the other. If one leg of the stool was loose, the whole thing would topple over.

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