The one problem Trump can’t afford

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Voters say they’re worried about affordability. But Trump still seems to think high costs are a Democratic psyop.

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Republicans promised their midterm convention would feature lots of President Donald Trump. Night one of “Trumpapalooza” delivered — and then some.For almost two hours Wednesday night, Trump exhorted his base to turn out for November’s down-ballot elections. The meandering, made-for-TV speech hit all his Trumpiest subjects, from immigration and crime to transgender athletes, the White House ballroom, and taxes. But equally notable were the issues he brushed past.

The purpose of this convention, after all, was to energize Republican voters whose enthusiasm has flagged. The GOP could lose the House and/or Senate in November, despite its aggressive (and increasingly undemocratic) efforts to retain them.

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But Trump skirted several of the topics that voters care about most, like the cost of housing, food, and consumer goods. (More on the politics of affordability below.)

He never said the words “inflation,” “rent,” or “housing,” for instance. He mentioned grocery costs once in passing, when he falsely claimed they were “rapidly” going down. And his 90-second discussion of “affordability” blamed green-energy policies and Democrats for rising prices: “It’s fake. They are so fake,” he said.

Still, Trump does seem to recognize voters’ economic angst. He promised, fantastically and impossibly, to cut everyone $5,000 checks if Republicans hold Congress on Election Day.

Trumpapalooza continues tonight with a keynote by Vice President JD Vance. Personally, I’ll be watching to see if he addresses affordability — or any other important, less-Trumpy topics.

During his first presidential campaign, Trump famously said that he could “stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody” without losing supporters. Now, as his party fights to retain control of Congress, he’s again testing what he can get away with — this time, by repeatedly dismissing Americans’ growing concerns about the cost of food, housing and gasoline.