Democrats are seizing on a nationwide spike in egg prices to argue that President Donald Trump isn’t making good on his campaign pledges to cut food prices.
In a letter to Trump, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren leads a group of 20 Democratic lawmakers accusing the Republican of backtracking on a promise to lower supermarket bills by ignoring the key voter issue in scores of executive orders he has signed since being sworn into office last week.
“Instead of working to lower their grocery bills however, you have used the first week of your administration on attempting to end birthright citizenship, pardoning individuals who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and renaming a mountain,” the lawmakers wrote.
The letter, which was also signed by Reps. Seth Moulton and Jim McGovern, pointed to a Trump administration memo that calls for helping lower the cost of living for Americans by reducing “harmful, coercive ‘climate’ policies driving up the costs of food and fuel.”
“Your sole action on costs was an executive order that contained only the barest mention of food prices, and not a single specific policy to reduce them,” they wrote.
The lawmakers said there are several possible actions the Trump administration could take which they argue would lower prices nationwide, such as prohibiting “exclusionary contracting” by the food industry and directing the Department of Justice to crack down on price-fixing and other anti-competitive practices.
On the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly pledged to lower grocery prices and everyday costs for Americans by boosting energy production, creating jobs, and encouraging investment. Trump boasted that he won the election on “groceries” in a recent interview, saying he’s “going to bring those prices way down.”
But food prices continue to rise in the wake of the presidential election, where exit polls showed the high cost of eggs and other staples was a key issue for voters. The cost of groceries rose 1.8% in the past year, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Eggs saw the biggest jump, increasing 36.8% during the same time frame.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said the spike in egg prices is being driven nationwide by bird flu outbreaks in several states with large populations of egg-laying hens and expects those costs to rise by 20% this year.
More than 13.2 million chickens were euthanized last year as a result of the 2024 outbreak, the federal agency said in a report issued last week. So far this year about 8.3 million birds have been euthanized after outbreaks in several states, including California and Ohio.
“Shell egg availability remains limited and inconsistent in many retail markets with many affected grocers employing steps to limit consumer purchasing to stretch their existing supplies including limiting or ending promotional activity, placing limits on units purchased per shopping trip, and holding prices at record or near-record highs – none of which helps to spur demand,” the USDA said in a report.
Vice President JD Vance told reporters over the weekend that the new administration is focused on bringing jobs back to the U.S., increasing investment and reducing burdensome regulations which he argued will lower our food prices. He urged Americans to be patient.
“It’s going to take a little bit of time,” Vance told CBS News’ Face the Nation on Sunday. “Rome wasn’t built in a day and while we’ve done a whole lot, we can’t undo all of the damage of Joe Biden’s presidency in four days.”
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com.