Trump’s lack of focus on economy spooks Republicans in 2026 election

Over the course of four days earlier this month, President Donald Trump posted about his proposed proposal on his Truth Social account. triumphal arch, ballroom construction, Iran warA. UFC fight in the White House and Bruce Springsteen’s alleged plastic surgery.

He also posted (and later deleted) an AI-generated photo. himself as Jesusright after something Spanking aimed at Pope Leo XIVTrump said he “must act as Pope, use Common Sense, stop serving the Radical Left, and focus on being the Great Pope, not the Politician.”

What has long been missing from the president’s social media presence and recent public discourse has been the economy, a topic Trump discussed at the White House in 2016 and 2024.

“Trump’s first deal with the American people was: ‘I’m rude and a little embarrassing, but I know how to run the economy.’ “And they believed it because they remembered that the economy was good in 2016,” he said. mike murphyHe is a former anti-Trump Republican strategist and co-host of the “Hacks on Tap” podcast with David Axelrod.

Critics and concerned Republicans say Trump is not making the economy a priority enough with just over six months until this year’s election. shift focus back Cost of living issues were touched upon last week.

But even when Trump brings up the economy, his words do not reflect the reality that most Americans feel. Gasoline prices recently said — which ones 27% higher than a year ago According to AAA — “not too high” and its affordability is a “Democratic hoax.”

This is a tone deafness that leads to disruption of the voting process. Sixty percent of respondents to CNBC’s All-America Economic Survey for the first quarter of 2026, released Thursday, disapproved of his handling of the economy. The change reminds some political consultants of the missteps made by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2024 election cycle.

saying Inflation is “temporary” Much like Trump officials declaring gas prices would drop, as Biden Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen did in June 2021 “a few more weeks” Like they did during the Iran war, said Democratic strategist and former congressional aide Adam Bozzi.

Republicans hope to maintain narrow majorities in the House and Senate, but some worry the party could squander the GOP’s long-held advantage on the economy and repeat the mistakes Democrats have made before.

“He lost his franchise on the economy, and Democrats realized that was his vulnerability,” Murphy said.

Democratic campaigns are flipping the economic script

White House spokesman Kush Desai disputed the notion that Trump and Republicans are losing ground on the economy.

“President Trump can walk and chew gum at the same time,” he said. “Since the launch of the epic Operation Rage, President Trump has signed numerous executive orders on housing affordability, TrumpRx has added new discounted drug brackets, and tens of millions of Americans have received historic tax refund checks thanks to the President’s Working Families Tax Cuts.” The Working Families Tax Cut Act is the 2025 GOP tax and spending package, more commonly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

But Democrats see an opening and are seizing the moment to use economic messaging to their advantage, flipping the script on this year’s election as Trump’s attention is diverted by election conspiracies, personal vendettas and foreign policy.

Casey BurgatThe director of the legislative affairs program at George Washington University’s Institute of Political Management said he sees this transformation as Democrats take greater ownership of the economy.

“I guess maybe [Democrats’] The autopsy told them that communication had broken down and that people couldn’t explain how they were feeling at their kitchen tables,” Burgat said. “But now that Trump has it, the shoe is on the other foot. And what was his best attack back in the day? [Biden] “His management is now his greatest weakness.”

Despite the pressureThe Democratic National Committee has not released its official post-mortem report on the 2024 election, which saw Republicans storm the White House and maintain control of both houses of Congress. But there is some consensus about what went wrong.

“When we look back, we always look to 2020, but I think we have a lot of evidence to show that the economy and the cost of living are on the minds of most voters, especially those with dual haters for both candidates,” he said. Tre Eastonvice president of public policy at Searchlight Institute, centrist Democratic think tank, and former aide to Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa.

The economy is out of focus

To Trump critics like Murphy, the president appears unable to maintain focus on cost-of-living issues as Americans’ economic concerns grow and Trump’s support on the issue sinks to new lows.

“This president, who is supposed to be a hot-shot businessman, is prioritizing things elsewhere. I think that’s definitely going to be an issue for Republicans in the midterm elections,” said Executive Director Brittany Martinez. Principles First It’s an organization that positions itself as an alternative to the Conservative Political Action Conference and is a former aide to Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

At an impromptu press conference to tout the “no tax on tips” policy that Trump is introducing as part of the 2025 tax and spending bill, a Doordash delivery woman was forced to keep the president on task when he veered off into talking about transgender men in sports.

Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, who sparred with Trump over the tariffs and is retiring at the end of this term, said in an interview that some of those were “own goals.” “There are some self-inflicted wounds that are very unnecessary.”

And Democrats are attacking as much as they can, especially since the Iran war has caused gas prices to rise.

“Americans cannot afford Trump’s America. In contrast, Democrats are focused on cutting costs and reining in political corruption, and our candidates are focused on the issues voters care about most,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement. he said.

Democrats face their own electoral hurdles

Trump’s lack of focus left Democrats optimistic, but the party had no trouble heading into the midterm elections.

Even Trump’s approval tanksLatest polls show Democrats grossly unpopular like theirs Republican colleaguesAnd CNBC’s latest poll was released Thursday confirmed this feeling.

But while Democrats try to heal the broken brand, Republicans in Congress are heading for the exit.

Thirty eight members The GOP in the House of Representatives has announced they will not seek reelection, compared to only 23 Democrats. Bacon said some of the departures could be due to bad feelings within the ranks. He also worries about the effects of pushing issues like voter ID onto his own agenda and targeting international allies.

“Some things like the SAVE Act mean a lot to the base, but the independent undecided voters we need to have in November are not really interested in that,” Bacon said, referring to the voter ID bill Trump has pushed. “Threatening Canada, threatening Greenland. Going after NATO. I think a lot of people who voted for us look at that and they’re not impressed.”

One Republican official, who asked to remain anonymous to speak publicly, said much of what voters think about how the GOP will manage the economy will depend on whether the Iran war ends and when gas prices drop. He said Republicans are “super conscious” of avoiding mistakes Democrats have made in the past, but expressed cautious optimism.

“Maybe [the economy] It’s an issue where we’re slipping a little bit… But the Democrats still haven’t passed us,” the agent said.

“We’re not hitting the panic button on the campaign side of things right now. We’re going to give it some time. There’s going to be millions of news cycles from now until Election Day, where I don’t think gas prices are going to be much of a concern anymore,” he said.

“Hopefully.”