Trump burns the dollar and the rest of us pay for it
News and commentary for Floridians and Americans alike
By J.C. Bruce
We’ve all noticed that our dollars don’t seem to buy as much as they used to.
For that, we can thank Donald Trump. Since he took office, the value of the dollar compared to other currencies around the globe has slipped 10 percent. That represents the steepest decline in the greenback’s value in more than 50 years—and it all started at the beginning of Trump’s second term.
And what does the president have to say about that?
“You make a hell of a lot more money with a weaker dollar.”
Which may be true if you happen to be, say, one of Trump’s billionaire pals selling goods overseas where the buying power of foreign currencies is now stronger than our own.
But back on the home front, if you or I are trying to buy something imported, or we’re on vacation in, say, Mexico—the top foreign destination for Americans—suddenly everything costs more than it used to.
Take the peso, for instance. The dollar is now 16 percent weaker against the peso than it was in early 2025. (Which explains the higher cost of tequila, unwelcome news on the eve of Cinco de Mayo.)
The same is true for the Euro and other currencies.
Good for big exporters, not so good for ordinary consumers.
But who am I to argue with Donald Trump on financial advice? I mean, have I ever bankrupted a casino? So, what do I know?
Then again, the Associated Press knows. This news comes to us courtesy of Matt Sedensky of the AP in a report he released Sunday.
He quoted an economist on what this means for you and me:
“It’s kind of a hidden tax,” Thomas Savidge of the conservative-leaning American Institute for Economic Research said. “What your dollar is going to be able to buy is going to shrink.”
Trump’s tariffs are another hidden tax. While he billed his extra-legal imposition of tariffs as a boon for the economy, what they really are is yet another way imported goods cost more.
Add to that his war in Iran, which has closed the Strait of Hormuz and caused the cost of fuel to skyrocket (and put Florida-based Spirit Airlines out of business), and it’s not surprising that Trump’s poll numbers are circling the drain.
ABC News released its latest polling data yesterday, showing that two-thirds of Americans think the country is headed in the wrong direction.
With gasoline prices at a four-year high, this poll indicates Trump’s overall approval rating has dipped to 37 percent “and his 62 percent disapproval rating is a record high over both presidential terms.”
Trump’s disapproval rating would be even higher but for the fact he’s managed to hang on to the MAGA faithful, with fully 85 percent of Republicans still expressing confidence in his leadership.
Further evidence that reality is not always more powerful than fiction.
Related:
How a weaker dollar is quietly making life more expensive
J.C. Bruce is the founder of the Tropic Press newsletter and website. He’s an award-winning journalist and author who holds dual citizenship in the United States of America and his native Florida.
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J.C. Bruce
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