Trump’s Economic Numbers Worrisome

For all of President Donald Trump’s promises of an economic “golden age,” a spate of weak indicators this week painted a potentially worrisome picture as the impacts of his policies come into focus.

Trump's aggressive use of tariffs, executive actions, spending cuts, and tax code changes carries significant political risk if he fails to deliver middle-class prosperity.

Job gains are dwindling, inflation is ticking upward, and growth has slowed compared to last year, Josh Boak and Christopher Rugaber reported for the Associated Press (AP).

More than six months into his term, Trump’s blitz of tariff hikes and his new tax and spending bill have reshaped America’s trade, manufacturing, energy, and tax systems to his own liking.

He’s eager to take credit for any wins that might occur and is looking for someone else to blame if the financial situation starts to falter. But so far, this is not the boom the Republican president promised.

His ability to blame his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, for any economic challenges has diminished, as the world economy now reacts to his every word and social media post.

Trump's aggressive use of tariffs, executive actions, spending cuts, and tax code changes carries significant political risk if he fails to deliver middle-class prosperity.

The effects of his new tariffs are still several months away from rippling through the economy—just as many Trump allies in Congress prepare to campaign in the midterm elections.

When Friday’s 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 monthly jobs figures.

“Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate—they can’t be manipulated for political purposes,” Trump said on Truth Social, without providing evidence for his claim.

It’s possible that the disappointing numbers are growing pains from the rapid transformation caused by Trump and that stronger growth will return — or they may be a preview of even more disruption to come.