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

Voters are heading into the midterm elections, less than a month away, with household costs weighing heavily on their view of the economy, and many of the prices President Donald Trump pledged to cut in his 2024 campaign are higher. He had talked of gasoline under $2 a gallon, 2% mortgage rates and lower grocery bills. A recent CBS News poll found that nine in 10 Americans rank prices as the main influence on how they judge the economy, despite solid growth and low unemployment. Economists note that five years of post-pandemic inflation set the stage, but some administration policies added to it.

Researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York estimate that tariffs added roughly 2.9 percentage points to inflation through February. The war with Iran, which began in late February, has disrupted oil shipments. Gasoline averaged $4.37 on Oct. 9, up 47% from $2.98 on Feb. 27, and diesel reached a record $6.53 on Sept. 22. Food eaten at home is up 4% since November 2024, and residential electricity costs rose 12.5% from December 2024 to July. White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the president's agenda stopped Biden's inflation crisis and has delivered wins for families.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CBS News’s reporting. Read the full story at CBS News →