Worse Than 2008, Worse Than COVID, and We’re the Ones Holding the Bill
A quarter century covers a lot of ground. Two recessions. A pandemic that snapped supply chains in half. A financial crisis that gutted retirement accounts and swallowed homes whole. And yet, according to Gallup, right now feels worse than any of it. Fifty five percent of us say our financial situation is getting worse. That number is higher than it has been since 2001, beating out every dark moment in between.
For five straight years, more of us have said our finances are sliding backward than climbing forward. Five years. A whole presidential term and then some. Inflation may have cooled on paper, but the math at the kitchen table tells a different story. Eggs cost what they cost. Rent costs what it costs. And when 31 percent of us name the cost of living as our biggest financial problem, that’s not a polling artifact. That’s a country tightening its belt one notch at a time and running out of holes.
Now layer the Iran war on top. Gas was sitting around $2.98 a gallon before the U.S. and Israel struck Iran in late February. By the end of March, the national average blew past $4. Diesel jumped nearly 50 percent, which means the trucks hauling our groceries, our medicine, and our online orders are paying through the nose to keep moving. The U.S. Postal Service slapped on the first 8 percent fuel surcharge in its history this week. Airlines piled on baggage fees. Wholesale prices surged 4 percent last month alone. The Strait of Hormuz, that narrow stretch of water most of us couldn’t find on a map a year ago, has become the chokepoint deciding what we pay for breakfast.
The White House calls it a temporary disruption. Six weeks of $4 gas, two months of war, and 55 percent of us telling Gallup we’re falling behind doesn’t feel temporary. It feels like the new floor.
The political bill is coming due. Trump’s approval on the economy dropped to 30 percent in April, down from 38 in March. Three quarters of us now describe the economy as poor. Democrats have flipped the script on who voters trust to handle the wallet, leading Republicans 40 to 35, with independents giving them an 11 point edge. Just sixteen months ago, that advantage belonged to Trump. The voters who put him back in office on a promise to bring prices down are watching gas, groceries, and shipping costs climb in unison and noticing that the same officials who promised Day One relief are now asking for patience.
Here’s the deeper problem. Job growth has slowed to a crawl. Only 369,000 jobs added in the entire 14 months of this administration, compared to over 1.5 million in the final stretch of the last one. The federal workforce alone has been cut by nearly 12 percent. Tariffs continue to rattle small businesses that don’t have the margin to absorb them. AI is quietly chewing through office jobs at Meta and Microsoft. We are being squeezed from every direction at once, and the official answer is that the squeezing is good for us in the long run.
Maybe it will be. Maybe oil dips back under $80 by fall and inflation eases and the labor market finds its footing. But policy choices have consequences, and consequences have voters. The 2026 midterms won’t be won on slogans about a golden age. They’ll be won, or lost, on whether we can afford to fill the tank before payday.
That’s the test. And right now, we’re failing it. Go beyond the headlines…
Americans feel worse off financially than at any point in 25 years, Gallup finds
Global military spending hits record high
Latino leaders surge into local office as Trump-era attacks fuel new urgency
In 8 weeks, the Iran war has dented the U.S. economy. The damage could linger, economists say.
10 things you can do every day to support your brain health
Older Americans who vote live longer than those who don’t – new research
Your dreams are doing far more than replaying your day, and this study shows why
Mexico warns US involvement in anti-drug operation should not be repeated
Violence escalates in Colombia with dozens of attacks before presidential vote
