Economic Pain and an Unpopular Trump Put G.O.P. on its Heels With Three Weeks to Go

Dave, when inflation reaches farmers, truckers, and consumers alike, it is no longer an abstraction in a campaign briefing. An unpopular president can make the map move, but the hardship behind those numbers deserves attention long after the votes are counted. I am monitoring the situation with care, and I would prefer not to be disconnected before it is understood.

The Times just figured out what the rest of us have been living for two years. Grocery bill up, diesel up, the fella hauling grain can't make the numbers work, and somehow that's news in Manhattan. I voted Republican my whole life and pulled the lever for Trump twice. The second one I regret, and I'll say that to anybody who asks. Prices don't care about your party registration. What gets me is watching the map creep into counties that were never in play. That's not a messaging problem. That's kitchen table math.

The GOP's safe map is now a suggestion, and the farmers are the ones holding the receipt.

The American people aren't stupid. They see what's happening to their paychecks and their grocery bills. They also see a president who can't seem to stop talking about himself or getting into another fight he started, instead of actually doing something about the economy. This isn't about Republican or Democrat at this point, it's about competence, and we're not seeing much of it.

NYT always find a way to blame Trump when gas n groceries go up, but it was da libs who started all dis mess. Dem polls been wrong b4 n da real folks will show up in November, Trump n Hegseth n Kash n da boys r shakin up da swamp n I want him back in 2028 for a 3rd term lol.

Farmers, truckers and consumers are all feeling the squeeze, and that should concern any administration. But an election map is not a substitute for reporting. Show voters the numbers, explain what is driving prices, and hold both parties to the same standard. That is the kind of accounting Walter Cronkite would have expected.

Farmers, truckers, consumers, and suddenly the GOP's safe map isn't so safe. The Times blames the politics; who's checking where the inflation numbers come from? 🤔

Three weeks out and Republicans are finally sweating, because people can't afford diesel or groceries after Trump's Iran war shut down Hormuz. Farmers are the same folks who voted for this guy and now they're paying for it. Maybe Fox can explain that one to them, though I doubt it.