Donald Trump is facing a backlash from inside his own base as frustration over the cost of living reaches a breaking point. A new Politico poll shows almost half of Americans now feel the affordability crisis is the worst they have ever lived through, and a surprising share of Trump’s 2024 voters say they feel the same way.
According to the survey, 46 percent of all Americans believe the soaring cost of everything from groceries to housing is Trump’s responsibility, now that he is back in the White House. Even more surprising, 37 percent of the people who voted for him in 2024 say they cannot remember a time when things felt worse than they do now.
The findings cut directly against Trump’s long running effort to blame the crisis on his Democratic predecessor, President Joe Biden. The former president has repeatedly insisted that Biden is responsible for “the worst inflation in the history of our country,” even as voters increasingly point the finger back at his administration.
In recent days, Trump has leaned even harder into that message. During a Cabinet meeting this week, he brushed off the idea that affordability is a genuine concern, instead claiming it is a political trick. “There is this fake narrative that the Democrats talk about, ‘affordability,’” Trump said. “They just say the word, it does not mean anything to anybody, they just say it, ‘affordability.’”
He continued by calling the concept itself fraudulent. “The word ‘affordability’ is a con job by the Democrats,” Trump said, describing it as a “Democrat scam.”
But the poll numbers suggest voters are not buying it. Many households are still struggling with high prices for rent, insurance, utilities and food. Inflation has cooled from its 2022 peak, yet many Americans say they do not feel relief in their day to day expenses, and that their paychecks are still falling behind.
Politico: Almost half — 46% — say the cost of living in the U.S. is the worst they can ever remember it being, a view held by 37% of 2024 Trump voters. Americans also say that the affordability crisis is Trump’s responsibility, with 46% saying it is his economy now and his… pic.twitter.com/r3O8fxYDpJ
— annmarie hordern (@annmarie) December 4, 2025
Other national surveys echo the trend. Trump’s approval ratings have been stuck in the low 40s, with most Americans disapproving of his handling of the economy. Some polls show voters believe Trump’s policies have made prices worse, not better, despite his frequent boast that he has “stopped inflation in its tracks.”
Democrats have seized on the vulnerability. Campaigns across the country have tied local Republicans to Trump’s handling of the economy, arguing that the affordability crisis has grown on his watch. Recent Democratic wins in places like New Jersey and Virginia suggest that worries about everyday costs are driving voters in a big way, even in areas that once leaned toward Republicans.
Trump, meanwhile, is trying to shift the conversation. He has pushed new tariffs, regulatory rollbacks, and public messaging aimed at downplaying the seriousness of rising prices. But the latest Politico poll marks one of the clearest indications yet that the affordability issue is cutting through his defenses and reshaping public opinion, including among his own supporters.
When 46 percent of Americans, and more than a third of Trump’s own voters, say the cost of living is the worst they have ever seen, blaming the problem on a “fake narrative” may no longer be enough. For the first time in years, the anger inside MAGA world is aimed not at Democrats, but at the man they helped put back in the Oval Office.
