Trump snaps when grilled on cost-of-living crisis, rambling to evade — but reporters don’t back down

Washington, D.C. — President Donald Trump on Thursday pushed back against persistent questions about rising everyday costs during a bilateral meeting with Hungarian President Viktor Orbán, insisting that prices are “far less expensive” under his leadership and accusing reporters of failing to credit him for falling egg prices.

“The only problem is the fake news — you people don’t want to report it,” Trump said, referencing a brief media focus on egg shortages just days into his second term. He claimed reporters had “started screaming” about eggs “two days” after his January 20, inauguration — a timeline he had previously described as “three days” during a November 5 Fox News interview.

While wholesale egg prices have declined 18% from their January peak of $4.82 per dozen to $3.95, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data released November 6, other household staples remain elevated.

Ground beef is up 9.4% year-over-year, electricity rates have risen faster than inflation in 26 states, and average rent increased 5.1% nationally, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ October Consumer Price Index.

Trump pointed to a Walmart estimate showing the cost of a Thanksgiving dinner down 25% from last year but did not acknowledge that the basket uses smaller portions and excludes brand-name items, according to the retailer’s methodology.

“The reason I don’t want to talk about affordability is because everybody knows that it’s far less expensive under Trump than it is under Sleepy Joe Biden,” the president said.

When pressed further by an NBC News correspondent, Trump interrupted: “You work for fake news,” and declined follow-up questions. He then summoned White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt to respond.

Leavitt attributed current economic challenges to policies inherited from the Biden administration. However, Biden, in turn, had pinned the cost-of-living crisis in large part on unchecked corporate greed.

Voter Backlash Fuels Democratic Gains

The exchange came three days after off-year elections in which Democrats swept key races in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia, and California — victories driven in part by voter frustration over living costs.

A post-election survey by AP VoteCast found 64% of voters who supported Democratic candidates listed the economy as a top issue. In Aurora, Colorado, progressives flipped the city council; in California, voters approved Proposition 50, enabling state legislators to redraw congressional districts before the 2026 midterms.

The 38-day government shutdown, now the longest in U.S. history, has delayed the October jobs report and disrupted federal services. Moody’s Analytics estimates a daily GDP loss of $3.1 billion.

A federal judge issued a November 5, order requiring partial payments to essential USDA and FDA personnel, ensuring continued food safety inspections and drug approvals.

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Trump is scheduled to host an “Affordability Town Hall” in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on November 12, his first major economic event since the election results.

House Republican leadership has set a November 10 vote on a continuing resolution to fund the government, though passage remains uncertain without Democratic support for ACA subsidy extensions.