Illinois Governor JB Pritzker had a blunt response after ABC News shared a story on its official X account claiming a "hidden force" is raising costs.
The news outlet shared a post claiming the following:
"A hidden force is quietly pushing up costs for everything from your summer vacation to your weekly grocery bills: a weaker U.S. dollar."
Its story notes that "the U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against other major currencies, logged its steepest six-month drop in more than 50 years in the first half of 2025."
Notably, the story mentions that "a strong dollar makes imports cheaper and can help keep inflation in check" while "a weak one can increase prices on foreign goods but boost American exports."
Pritzker responded to the story by sharing a picture of President Donald Trump captioned "The hidden force"—and he couldn't have been more direct than that.
He has a point—Trump has made it very clear he doesn't care about the affordability crisis.
Last year, insisting prices are down despite rising inflation, he claimed that affordability "doesn't mean a thing to anybody." He went on to accuse Democrats of crafting a “fake narrative” and “con job” to trick the American people into not voting for Republicans.
Trump previously dismissed the concerns of a MAGA voter who begged him to fulfill his campaign promise to lower the price of groceries. Trump, responding to the North Carolina woman, said, "I think of groceries, you know, it's an old-fashioned word, but it's a beautiful word," and nonetheless insisted that "beef, we have to get down, but we've got prices way down."
Trump said that under his administration, the U.S. has seen "the biggest reduction in costs in the history of that chart or whatever that thing is they do." He also said he doesn't "want to hear a thing about the affordability because right now we're much less."
Republicans have faced pressure from constituents nationwide to address the rising cost of living, but Americans are feeling pain at the pump now that the Iran war, which the Trump administration kicked off in late February, has prompted a spike in gas prices.
Earlier this week, the U.S. military said it engaged Iranian forces, sinking six small boats that were targeting civilian vessels as American forces worked to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Twenty percent of the global oil supply flows through this strategically important waterway and there is no sign the economic crunch imposed by these disruptions will end soon.
Many concurred with Pritzker and criticized the network themselves.
Take notes, ABC.
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