Overview
- President Trump told reporters he “loved the inflation” after the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a 4.2% annual rise in the Consumer Price Index, the highest year-over-year increase in three years on Wednesday.
- The comment drew immediate ridicule on cable TV and confrontation on air, including CNN’s Kaitlan Collins pressing GOP analyst Scott Jennings over defenses of the remark.
- Trump later told the New York Post he meant he loved that inflation “wasn’t any higher,” an attempted clarification that did not stop pundits and some Republicans from publicly distancing themselves.
- Data analysts point to historically weak approval on inflation and gas prices for the president, with CNN’s Harry Enten citing polls showing net approval on inflation well below zero and warning the issue could cost Republicans in the midterms.
- Economists and commentators linked the recent price jump to Trump-era tariffs and disruptions tied to the Iran war, noting the immediate effects on household budgets from higher fuel and grocery costs and saying voters are likely to notice those changes at the ballot box.