With the first year of Trump’s second noncontinuous term coming to a close, America has faced numerous civil and social upheavals, with a key factor being economic instability. Looking back on Trump’s first year, often crucial to set an administration’s tone, it’s clear that economic performance, trade, labor, cost of living, and government spending all performed much more poorly than promised to the American people. With these concerns all in mind among constituents, one must wonder how the Trump administration will respond to such criticism across several political sectors and how the American people can demand better.
Volatile Economic Performances of the Last Year
As Trump installed tariffs across U.S. trade, we saw several areas of the nation’s economy take hits, with one significant factor being GDP, the gross domestic product that a nation produces within its confines. US GDP experienced severe volatility, creating instability for numerous Americans, as growth among this sector contracted throughout the year. These contractions created difficulties in economic planning, leading to business freezes, job insecurity, and consumer pullback, impacting the performance of the U.S. market economy, possibly hinting at threats of recession. This led to unreliability among businesses when forecasting supply and demand shifts for their businesses, as well as, economic growth lacking long-momentum. These effects often led to further policy uncertainty surrounding tariffs and trade.
Labor and Cost of Living Deficits
With further political uncertainty surrounding U.S. trade, job creation significantly slowed down, leading to rising unemployment among American workers. Further, as unemployment was on the rise, the cost of living rose due to increasing prices by businesses, in order to combat tariff supply costs. These sentiments were deeply felt among numerous American groups, with a significant impact on young workers, as they entered the job market out of college. With such an uncertain job market, many college students are left fearful of whether they’ll have career prospects upon graduation.
Public Reaction to Trump Era Economy
As Trump’s administration faces continued economic threats, many Americans are deeply unhappy with his performances and have displayed deep concerns and voter dissatisfaction for not only the economy, but many of Trump-era programs, as well. Many voters believe that Trump has worsened the US economy, with this significant dissatisfaction serving as a backdrop for the tone of this current administration. As Trump’s economic performance continues, acts such as protests and strikes will display noticeable effects on daily economic performance, as many Americans boycott the market, in hopes of their concerns being heard.
Overall, this first year back for Trump has not only been a great disappointment for his administration, but a worrying sign for millions of Americans. As unemployment and political instability rise, all one can do is wonder how the remainder of the term will play out, not only on an economic scale, but on a civil scale, as a whole.