President Donald Trump arrives for the lighting of the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, near the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)2025-12-09T05:01:36Z WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump will road-test his claims that hes tackling Americans affordability woes at a Tuesday rally in Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania shifting an argument made in Oval Office appearances and social media posts to a campaign-style event.The trip comes as polling consistently shows that public trust in Trumps economic leadership has faltered. Following dismal results for Republicans in last months off-cycle elections, the White House has sought to convince voters that the economy will emerge stronger next year and that any anxieties over inflation have nothing to do with Trump.The president has consistently blamed his predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, for inflation even as his own aggressive implementation of policies has pushed up prices that had been settling down after spiking in 2022 to a four-decade high. Inflation began to accelerate after Trump announced his sweeping Liberation Day tariffs in April. Companies warned that the import taxes could be passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices and reduced hiring, yet Trump continues to insist that inflation has faded. Were bringing prices way down, Trump said at the White House on Monday. You can call it affordability or anything you want but the Democrats caused the affordability problem and were the ones that are fixing it. The presidents reception in the county hosting his Tuesday rally could give a signal of just how much voters trust his claims. Monroe County flipped to Trump in the 2024 election after having backed Biden in 2020, helping the Republican to win the swing state of Pennsylvania and return to the White House after a four-year hiatus. As home to the Pocono Mountains, the county has largely relied on tourism for skiing, hiking, hunting and other activities as a source of jobs. Its proximity to New York City under two hours by car has also attracted people seeking more affordable housing. Its also an area that could help decide control of the House in next years midterm elections.Trump is holding his rally in a congressional district held by freshman Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan, who is a top target of Democrats and won his 2024 race by about 1.5 percentage points, among the nations closest. Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti, a Democrat, is running for the nomination to challenge him.White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said on the online conservative talk show The Mom View that Trump would be on the campaign trail next year to engage supporters who otherwise might sit out a congressional race.Wiles, who helped manage Trumps 2024 campaign, said most administrations try to localize midterm elections and keep the president out of the race, but she intends to do the opposite of that.Were actually going to turn that on its head, Wiles said, and put him on the ballot because so many of those low-propensity voters are Trump voters. Wiles added, So I havent quite broken it to him yet, but hes going to campaign like its 2024 again. Trump has said hes giving consumers relief by relaxing fuel efficiency standards for autos and signing agreements to reduce list prices on prescription drugs.Trump has also advocated for cuts to the Federal Reserves benchmark interest rate which influences the supply of money in the U.S. economy. He argues that would reduce the cost of mortgages and auto loans, although critics warn that cuts of the scale sought by Trump could instead worsen inflation.The U.S. economy has shown signs of resilience with the stock market up this year and overall growth looking solid for the third quarter. But many Americans see the prices of housing, groceries, education, electricity and other basic needs as swallowing up their incomes, a dynamic that the Trump administration has said it expects to fade next year with more investments in artificial intelligence and manufacturing.Since the November elections where Democrats won key races with a focus on kitchen-table issues, Trump has often dismissed the concerns about prices as a hoax and con job to suggest that he bears no responsibility for inflation, even though he campaigned on his ability to quickly bring down prices. Just 33% of U.S. adults approve of Trumps handling of the economy, according to a November survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.___Levy reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. JOSH BOAK Boak covers the White House and economic policy for The Associated Press. He joined the AP in 2013. twitter mailto MARC LEVY Levy covers politics and state government in Pennsylvania for The Associated Press. He is based in Harrisburg. twitter