Recent economic signs point to a slowing U.S. economy with rising prices and shortages, driven by Trump’s policies that foster degrowth through tariffs and social program cuts. This approach risks higher costs and less prosperity, signaling a move toward a smaller, less consumer-driven economy.

The Rise of Degrowth Economics in Trump’s America

In the past few weeks, Americans learned that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. canceled half a billion dollars of government investment in the development of mRNA vaccines, Las Vegas saw a 7 percent drop in visitors, residential electricity prices shot up by an average of 6.5 percent, the number of housing permits issued hit their lowest point in half a decade, employers quit adding workers, the manufacturing sector shrank, and inflation rose.

These bleak figures depict an American economy slowing and its labor market weakening. A recession isn’t guaranteed, but it’s becoming much more likely and the stagflation predicted as inevitable when President Donald Trump began prosecuting his global trade war is now a lot closer. Americans, now and in the future, will be paying more and buying less. Trump’s second-term economic ideology is not only one of protectionism, mercantilism, atavism, and cronyism. It is also one of degrowth.

The article discusses how recent economic indicators suggest a slowing U.S. economy influenced by Trump’s policies, which promote degrowth—reducing consumption and production—through protectionism, trade tariffs, and cuts to social programs, potentially leading to higher prices, shortages, and a less prosperous future.