Despite President Trump’s denials, prices continue to rise. One driver of the reduction in affordability is Trump’s unprecedented corruption. According to Forbes, Trump’s net worth is $6.5 billion as of March 2026, up by $1.4 billion last year. This is in addition to massive corporate political contributions made to the Trump campaign during the last election.
According to an analysis by Climate Power, the oil and gas industry contributed $450 million in donations, lobbying and advertising to benefit Trump and Republicans in the 2024 election. Trump told fossil fuel executives that contributing to his campaign would be a “deal” because of the tax and policy breaks they would receive. Fossil fuel companies have profited enormously. Renewable energy projects and clean energy policies have been blocked. Trump’s liquid natural gas export policy cost households $16 billion in 2025 alone. Coal generated electricity increased 13% in 2025 after falling for years. Coal power plants are expensive and generate more carbon dioxide as well as toxic mercury, which harms brain development. Trump’s policies raise health care costs from burning fossil fuels, currently estimated to be $820 billion a year ($2,500 per capita) in the U.S. About 300,000 deaths in the U.S. each year are linked to fossil fuel pollution.
We are ceding advanced energy technology development to the Chinese and foregoing well-paying clean energy jobs. Last year was the first year that renewable energy sources have overtaken coal globally in electricity generation. Clean energy is cheaper, healthier and more secure than fossil fuel-generated energy. The sun and wind are not subject to blockade. Trump’s policies lock us into using more expensive energy. The future is clear and we are falling behind.
The Trump administration’s denial of the effects of greenhouse gases on climate change is deadly. A ProPublica and Guardian analysis indicated that Trump’s incentivizing of fossil fuels and reductions of renewable energy sources will lead to 1.3 million additional temperature-related deaths by 2115.
Trump’s tariffs have already cost the average family $1,700 per year, according to the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee. Small business importer tariff costs are costing them an average of $306,000, according to a Center for American Progress analysis.
The economic burden of tariffs is borne almost completely by American consumers and importers, not by foreign entities.
Trump has personally benefited from his tariff policy in many ways. On April 9, 2025, after a 20% downturn in the stock market, Trump posted on Truth Social “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!DJT.” Then, a few hours later, he announced a 90-day pause on tariffs. Stock markets jumped between 9% and 12% and Trump Media & Technology increased by 22%, creating a huge profit for him. This is stock market manipulation and is illegal. Furthermore, ProPublica found that politically connected firms, which pay to get access to Trump at Mar-a-Lago, have received tariff exemptions. PBS also reports that foreign interests and corporate entities are investing in Trump associated cryptocurrency ventures to gain favorable policy outcomes including tariff relief.
Trump accepted a customized jet worth $400 million from the Qatari royal family. This “flying palace” is being renovated at a cost of about $1 billion paid by taxpayers to serve as a new Air Force One. After his presidency, the plane is to be transferred to his Presidential Library for his personal use. This is a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause, which prohibits the acceptance of gifts from foreign states without Congressional approval. The question is what favorable policies did the Qataris receive in exchange for this “gift?”
The wealthiest 1% of Americans will pay at least a trillion dollars less in taxes over the next 10 years due to the Trump tax package. Middle-income Americans will see about a $900 tax increase in 2026. As one of the wealthiest Americans, Trump is benefitting hugely from his own legislation, while the impoverished suffer. Cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development are projected to lead to 14 million additional deaths worldwide by 2030, as reported by The Lancet. Currently, it’s estimated 762,000 people have died from these cuts, including 500,000 children. This crisis, in a saner world, should be a recurring lead story across media platforms, instead of just becoming lost in the background noise.
His tax cuts are severely impacting our health care system with hospitals and clinics closing and people unable to afford medical care. According to a study from the Yale School of Public Health and the University of Pennsylvania, reduced funding for health care will result in more than 51,000 preventable deaths a year in the U.S.
Families are going hungry in America. The Center for American Progress estimates cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will lead to about 70,000 deaths by 2040. All this misery and death so the greedy rich can have even more money.
Anyone who supports Trump should stop for a moment, take a breath and think carefully. Is this what you were voting for when you voted for Trump?
Daniel Hooberman lives in Laconia.