LOS ANGELES.–President Donald Trump on the day before Easter said that egg prices and inventories are down just in time for the holiday where decorating eggs have become a tradition. When Trump ran in 2024, he promised on taking office to lower egg and grocery prices, only to find the economy deteriorating, only made worse by his tariff strategy that frightened Wall Street, leading to the current meltdown with market down about 10% from Dec. 2024 highs. Trump talked to the media at the swearing in ceremony for 64-year-old Dr. Mehmet Oz to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Trump hoped the economy would be stronger under his watch if, for no other reason, former President Joe Biden left markets insecure because of his dementia. Trump said the Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins “a great job,” with egg prices down 87% from last year’s highs.
Trump hoped to have quick end to the Ukraine War by now, including an end to the Russian oil embargo. Hoping that ending the embargo would crater oil prices, Trump expected pump prices to drop precipitously once he could end the embargo, eventually trickling down to the logistics industry responsible for moving goods about the country. But since the Ukraine peace talks have stalled because of Zelensky and the EU, Trump has not delivered on his promise to drop grocery prices. “You can have all the eggs you want. We have too many eggs. In fact, if anything, the prices are getting too low. So, I just want to let you know that the prices are down,” Trump said. Trump rarely gets any credit for anything he does, only the blame when the stock market drops in value. Wholesale Egg prices dropped to $3.19 a dozen April 18, considerably lower than $5.90 in February.
Trump’s attempts at peacemaking in Ukraine have been stymied by Ukraine’s 47-year-old President Volodymyr Zelens who wants to keep the war going as long as possible. You’d think Zelensky, after losing so much sovereign land over the last three years, would do anything to bring peace to his country. But no, Zelensky, if he admits defeat with the Krelim, fears he would be ousted from power in Kiev. So, Zelensky cleverly turned the European Union against Trump, deciding to sabotage his peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. If Trump could get his peace deal, he could end the Russian oil embargo, flood the market with oil an drive down energy prices all over the globe, causing inflation to drop. So, keeping the war going has had bad consequences to Trump’s economic plans to lower prices across-the-board, leaving current grocery prices at too high a level.
Getting the economy going and getting prices down should by Trump’s top priority while he’s trying to work on a Ukraine War peace deal. Most voters care more about economics than they do about foreign policy, even though Trump recognizes how they’re connected. If Trump gets his peace deal, he can cancel Biden’s Russian oil embargo, something he could actually do before completing a peace deal. Trump has been so vilified by Democrats and the fake news for making concessions to Putin to end the war. But as his special envoy Steve Witknoff said after meeting with Putin last week for five hours, the conditions for a peace deal are clear. Putin wants to keep all the land he’s taken from Ukraine over the last three years. Zelensky doesn’t want to face reality and sign a peace deal when he has to surrender his sovereign territory. So, Trump can’t depend on Zelensky for anything.
Trump can’t get over the economic hump unless he suspends the Russian oil embargo and any remaining sanctions. Russia wants to return to the SWIFT system of global payments to sell his oil, grain and fertilizer on world markets. If Putin can finally agree to a peace deal, Trump will make sure he’s invited back on the G7 and G20, creating more business opportunities for the Russian Federation. Trump seeks to normalize U.S.-Russia relations, something that has infuriated Zelensky who, at this point, no longer considers Trump an ally. When you think of all the cash-and-arms given to Ukraine, around $300 billion, you’d think Zelensky would show more respect to the United States. Zelensky rejects Trump trying to reset U.S.-Russian relations when Putin continues the war. Trump wants to return U.S.-Russian relations to the way it was before Biden came to office in 2020.
Trump sees inflation moderating, largely because he’s worked to level the playing field with tariffs with various countries around the globe. “Price levels to the consumer have eased considerably from early-year highs but remain at levels not yet conducive to more than normal purchases needs,” said the Department of Agriculture. “By the way, prices are down. Groceries are down,” Trump said April 18. “Eggs, which they—you hit me so hard. I’ll never forget the first day, the first week in office, they were screaming at me about eggs,” Trump said, showing that the press slams him for everything. “I said, ‘What’s going with eggs?’ They were doubling and tripling. I said, “I just got here. They were up like double, triple, and you could get any,” Trump said. “They said you won’t have eggs for Easter. Well, you can have all the eggs you want,” Trump said, showing real progress.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
