Democratic lawmakers are accusing Donald Trump of failing to act on his repeated promise to lower grocery prices on his first day in office. The lawmakers, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and 20 congressional Democrats, vocalized their disappointment in a scathing letter signed last Sunday.
“We write to ask about your Administration’s plan to lower food prices for American families. Americans, in the first days of your new presidency, are facing egg shortages amidst an avian flu outbreak and still-high prices at the grocery store,” the letter, which was first obtained by NBC News, read. “During your campaign, you repeatedly promised you would lower food prices ‘immediately’ if elected president.”
Back in August, Trump pledged to “immediately bring prices down, starting on day one” — a promise he’s continued to make throughout his campaign. The president also vowed to increase domestic oil production (“We will drill, baby, drill,” he famously said) in hopes of making food more affordable for Americans.
In an interview with NBC News’ Kristen Welker, Trump touted his fight to lower food costs: “Very simple word, groceries… When you buy apples, when you buy bacon, when you buy eggs, they would double and triple the price over a short period of time, and I won an election based on that. We're going to bring those prices way down.”
“I'm looking to make our country great. I'm looking to get — bring prices down,” he added.
Now, more than a week after his inauguration, Trump has yet to fulfill that promise. Fast-flation — a portmanteau of "fast food" and "inflation" — continues to wreak havoc as fast food chains introduce brand-new value menu offerings to win over financially-conscious customers. Egg prices are also at an all-time high due to an ongoing bird flu outbreak that’s killing chickens nationwide. Same with meat prices, which have been affected by extreme environmental conditions and natural disasters.
In their recent letter addressed to Trump, Democrats attacked the president for focusing on the wrong issues in the first week of his term.
“But during your first week of office you have instead focused on mass deportations and pardoning January 6 attackers, including those who assaulted Capitol police officers,” they said. “Your sole action on costs was an executive order that contained only the barest mention of food prices, and not a single specific policy to reduce them.
“To make food more affordable, you should look to the dominant food and grocery companies that have made record profits on the backs of working families who have had to pay higher prices. These companies often exploit crises like pandemics and avian flu outbreaks as an opportunity to raise prices beyond what is needed to cover rising costs,” the letter added.
Democratic lawmakers urged Trump “to make good on your campaign promise to lower food prices for American families. Therefore, we ask that you respond to this letter with additional clarity on your plans to lower food prices.”
In response, the Trump administration said the president has already taken necessary steps to reduce food prices nationwide.
“President Trump immediately took action on day one to unleash American energy, which will drive down costs for families across the country,” Anna Kelly, the deputy White House press secretary, said in a statement, per NBC News. “He has already ended the failed economic policies of the past four years that skyrocketed inflation, which were rubber-stamped by Elizabeth Warren.”
The complete list of Democrats who signed the letter is as follows: Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Cory Booker (N.J.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) and Reps. Jim McGovern (Mass.), Ro Khanna (Calif.), Hank Johnson (Ga.), Seth Moulton (Mass.), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (Fla.), Chellie Pingree (Maine), Rosa DeLauro (Conn.), Greg Casar (Texas), Chris Deluzio (Pa.) Yassamin Ansari (Ariz.), Norma Torres (Calif.), Bonnie Watson Coleman (N.J.), Jesús “Chuy” García (Ill.), Maxine Dexter (Ore.), Danny Davis (Ill.), Steve Cohen (Tenn.) and Gabe Amo (R.I.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D.C.).
