Trump promised to lower prices for Americans. Here's what the data shows.

Key Points:

• President Trump campaigned in 2024 promising to lower Americans' cost of living, including gasoline prices below $2 a gallon and 2% mortgage rates, but two years later, many essential costs have sharply increased, fueling voter frustration ahead of midterm elections.
• Inflation remains elevated at an annual rate of 3.6% as of September, driven in part by Trump administration policies such as tariffs and military actions against Iran, which have disrupted oil supplies and raised energy prices significantly.
• Key consumer expenses like groceries, gasoline, electricity, natural gas, housing, and health insurance have all risen substantially since Trump took office, despite his campaign pledges to reduce these costs.
• Some areas, like car insurance premiums, have seen modest decreases recently, but this is attributed to market competition rather than policy changes, while credit card interest rate cap proposals by Trump failed to materialize.
• Prescription drug prices have decreased by 3.9% since early 2025, a development credited by the administration to Trump’s policies, including linking U.S. drug prices to those in other developed countries.