Inflation won Trump the presidency, but could cost him the midterms

For such an uncannily successful politician, Donald Trump exhibits a perplexing political myopia. His most recent own-goal was endorsing Ken Paxton, a state attorney general, against four-term senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary for Senate in Texas. Trump’s endorsement helped push the ethically compromised Maga firebrand over the top, to run against popular Democrat James Talarico in November, complicating the Republicans’ chances to keep the seat. But what truly screams “I want us to lose the midterms” is what Trump is doing about inflation, which is becoming his most vulnerable issue. According to a New York Times/Siena poll of registered voters earlier in May, Trump’s approval on handling the cost of living is underwater by 42 percentage points, poorer than his rating on handling the economy (minus 31 points) and the unpopular war in Iran (minus 34 points). It’s not unusual that one of his most effective weapons in defeating Kamala Harris in 2024 has been turned against him now that he is running things. What’s truly astonishing is how Trump seems willing to build a track record of inflationary policymaking. He seems to have decided that whatever fork appears in his path, he must take the one that leads to higher prices. The list of inflationary gambits probably starts with the round of “reciprocal” tariffs Trump unleashed in April of last year, which he tweaked, rejiggered, raised, cut and dropped after the supreme court told him to. …