James Carville confessed he's rethinking his most famous phrase because of a new threat posed by Trump.
During an episode of Politics War Room, Carville revisited his 1992 quote, "It's the economy, stupid," which he coined during the Bill Clinton campaign to hammer home what issue mattered the most. However, Carville said he now regrets the phrase because the economy doesn't matter anymore in the face of Trump's corruption.
"I now have come to detest the fact I said that," Carville said. "I listen to people say, 'People don't care about corruption. They care about the economy. As long as their incomes are up, they really don't care what [Trump] does.'"
Carville took another look at his quote amid new revelations about how Trump is profiting from deals, like those related to his crypto ventures and foreign mining. Carville explained that he's "afraid" he sold the economy as the top political priority so well that Trump's corruption is being overlooked.
"When I said it in 1992, you can say what you want about George H.W. Bush," who was running for reelection that year, "he was not corrupt, okay? He was not a corrupt man at all," Carville said.
The corruption under Trump is "breathtaking" and "staggering," though, Carville said, adding, "I want to punch him in the f— face." However, people keep turning their attention to the economy.
"People say, 'Yeah, you know, you're right, that's all people care about is the economy,'" Carville said. "The phrase actually haunts me today."
Co-host Al Hunt told Carville, "The bulk of the American electorate, even in this coming election, is going to be driven by economic considerations."
"I agree, and it pains me," Carville responded. "We can get over high egg prices, we can get over high gas prices, and we can get over a lot of interest rates. You can't get over systemic, endemic, persuasive corruption. That's everything."