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don beyer
'Betrayal of the Working Class': Trump War of Choice in Iran Pushes Inflation to New 3-Year High
"This isn’t just ‘bad vibes’ about the economy," said one economist. "There is real pain."
Jun 10, 2026
President Donald Trump during the 2024 campaign vowed to bring down the cost of living starting on the very first day of his presidency.
However, data released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Wednesday showed overall prices in May posted a yearly increase of 4.2%, marking the highest rate of inflation since 2023. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy costs, posted a yearly increase of 2.9%, the highest rate since September 2023.
Energy prices, which have skyrocketed since Trump launched an illegal war of choice with Iran in late February, were the primary driver of inflation last month, posting a 23.5% yearly increase from May 2025.
Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, noted that inflation last month was "so high that it's erasing all wage gains," which posted a yearly gain of 3.4% in May.
"Americans are getting squeezed financially," Long explained. "This isn't just 'bad vibes' about the economy. There is real pain, especially for middle-class and lower-income households. It's tough because so many basic items are seeing sizable price increases: gas, electricity, food, medical care."
"Americans are getting squeezed financially," Long explained. "This isn't just 'bad vibes' about the economy. There is real pain, especially for middle-class and lower-income households. It's tough because so many basic items are seeing sizable price increases: gas, electricity, food, medical care."
New York Times economics reporter Ben Casselman similarly noted the impact that rising energy costs, which are a direct result of Trump's Iran war, have had on Americans' earnings.
"The recent surge in energy prices has wiped out more than a year's worth of wage gains," Casselman wrote in a social media post. "Average hourly earnings, adjusted for inflation, are now back to exactly where they were when Trump returned to office."
Economist Steve Rattner posted a chart showing how energy prices exploded after Trump attacked Iran, which retaliated by shutting down the Strait of Hormuz to all commercial shipping.
"An entirely self-inflicted wound caused by Trump’s war on Iran," Rattner remarked.
The inflation story in one chart: gas +40% y/y, energy +24%.
An entirely self-inflicted wound caused by Trump’s War on Iran. pic.twitter.com/LnM5AKkXeA
— Steven Rattner (@SteveRattner) June 10, 2026
Charlie Bilello, chief marketing strategist at Creative Planning Investor, said the latest inflation numbers were so concerning that the US Federal Reserve "should be hiking rates" at its next meeting.
A decision to hike rates would likely anger Trump, who frequently pressured former Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to slash rates.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) responded to the inflation report by taking a shot at Trump for his economic mismanagement, including his tariffs on imported goods that have raised costs for US consumers.
"Trump promised repeatedly that he would 'end inflation' starting on day one but by almost every measure, he's failed to achieve those goals," Beyer said. "And far from lowering costs, his tariffs have only made the affordability crisis worse for the American people."
Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at the Groundwork Collaborative, said the new data makes clear that "high prices are here to stay."
"This month’s CPI print offers no relief to working families, who are being forced to pinch pennies and tighten belts in Trump’s economy," said Jacquez. "Working Americans no longer have any breathing room in their budgets and are dipping into their savings while the president spends millions in taxpayer funds to attend the NBA Finals. Trump’s betrayal of the working class has done lasting damage to our economy.”
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‘People Can’t Afford Rent,' Critics Say as White House Boasts of Trump’s Plan for Gold-Covered Arch
"While Americans worry about skyrocketing costs and another endless war, President Trump is focused on a taxpayer-funded vanity project," said Rep. Don Beyer.
Apr 10, 2026
On the same day that the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that inflation spiked at its fastest monthly rate in four years, the Trump administration unveiled renderings of President Donald Trump's proposed gold-covered 250-foot-tall arch to be built at Memorial Circle in Washington, DC.
The renderings, which were produced by architecture firm Harrison Design and posted on social media by the White House's rapid response account, show a gigantic arch that would be flanked on its corners by four gold lions and topped by a 60-foot-tall gold statue of what appears to be an angel.
🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/zcH5TtaOu7
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 10, 2026
According to a Friday report in The Washington Post, some preservationists have expressed concerns that the arch, which would be more than twice the height of the Lincoln Monument, would disproportionately tower over the DC skyline, and would block views of Arlington National Cemetery.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) slammed the president for pushing construction of a gaudy gold-covered arch at a time when Americans are struggling due to the cost-of-living crisis worsened by his war in Iran.
"While Americans worry about skyrocketing costs and another endless war," he wrote in a social media post, "President Trump is focused on a taxpayer-funded vanity project that would choke traffic, block our skyline, and tower over sacred ground where those who served our nation are buried, including my own parents and sister."
Beyer added that the arch is "about Donald Trump's ego," and vowed, "we're going to stop it."
Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) responded to the renderings by reminding the White House that "Americans can't afford groceries."
Progressive activist Nina Turner had a similar reaction to Clark, posting that "people can’t afford rent" in response to the renderings.
Podcaster Brian Taylor Cohen contrasted the renderings of the arch with a statement Trump made earlier this month when he said "it’s not possible" for the federal government "to take care of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things," because it needs to fund wars instead.
University of Missouri English professor Karen Piper also remarked on the opportunity cost of building the arch, along with other assorted Trump projects.
"This is why they're going to take away your Social Security, saying we can't afford it," she wrote. "Ballrooms, arches, and Don Jr. draining the Treasury."
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been named as a contender for the Democratic Party's 2028 presidential nomination, responded to the arch renderings by accusing Trump of "doing everything he can to wreck this country—this time with our nation's capital."
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) took issue with the decision to inscribe the phrase "one nation under God" at the top of the arch.
"That phrase came from Cold War propaganda, not our Founders," observed Huffman. "Trump stamping it on his vanity arch tells you everything about what this project is: a Christian nationalist monument, paid for with your tax dollars."
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Gas Prices in US Already Up 35% as Iranians Threaten to Close Another Strait Over Trump War
Rep. Don Beyer blamed the surge in gas prices on President Donald Trump's decision to wage "an illegal war against Iran with no plan or strategy."
Apr 06, 2026
As President Donald Trump continues threatening to commit war crimes in Iran by bombing power plants, Iran is signaling that it could put a further squeeze on global oil prices by shutting down yet another strait used for transporting petroleum outside the Middle East.
Ali Akbar Velayati, a former Iranian foreign minister and a top adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, threatened in a Sunday social media post to close down the Strait of Bab al-Mandeb, a waterway adjacent to the coast of Yemen that is under control of Iran-backed Houthi militants.
“If the White House dares to repeat its foolish mistakes," Velayati cautioned, "it will soon realize that the flow of global energy and trade can be disrupted with a single move."
As Al Jazeera noted in a Monday report, the Houthis already shut down the strait during Israel's war on Gaza, and doing so again at the same time Iran has shut down the Strait of Hormuz could send global energy prices to unprecedented highs.
"The strait is a vital route through which Saudi Arabia sends its oil to Asia," Al Jazeera reported. "If Bab al-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz were both shut, that would block 25%... of the world’s oil and gas supply."
Oil prices have shot up since Trump launched his illegal war with Iran more than a month ago, and on Monday the price of Brent crude oil futures was trading at $110 per barrel, while the average price for gas in the US rose to $4.12 per gallon, according to data from AAA.
Democratic members of the US Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC) last week released a study estimating that, thanks to Trump's war, Americans are paying 35% more to fill up their cars than they were paying a month earlier.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), a member of the JEC, pointed to the report in a Monday social media post and said Americans were getting hit with major price shocks because "President Trump decided to wage an illegal war against Iran with no plan or strategy."
Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Ranking Member of the JEC, told WMUR that Trump's Iran war took an already bad situation for American families and made it worse.
"Families are already being pushed to the brink," Hassan said. "That was true before the war started, by the cost of everything from groceries to rent to healthcare insurance premiums and prescriptions and even more. But now they're being forced to pay more at the pump."
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