The GOP will resist Donald Trump's call for a new economic policy on credit card use, a Nobel Prize winner has claimed.
Paul Krugman believes that, while the Republican Party is keen to appease the president, it would be a struggle to shift support to Trump's recent economic policy announcement. Trump called for a "one year cap on Credit Card Interest Rates at 10%" by January 20, and though the deadline is just a week away, it seems very unlikely this will pass into law.
Trump wrote on Truth Social, "Please be informed that we will no longer let the American Public be 'ripped off' by Credit Card Companies." He reiterated his support for the credit card cap earlier this week aboard Air Force One, telling supporters that credit card companies would be "in violation of the law" if they did not comply.
But economist Krugman has urged the GOP to resist bending to Trump's demands. Writing in his Substack, the Nobel Prize winner suggested Trump had an uphill battle on his hands to win support on this measure.
He wrote, "Now, facing likely electoral defeat in November, Trump has suddenly announced that he is imposing a credit card interest rate cap."
"Yet unlike Nixon, Trump isn’t working with Congress to pass legislation that is, in effect, a price control. In fact, he has shown no interest in doing anything substantive. Whatever Trump may imagine, posts on Truth Social do not have the force of law."
"Nor is there any realistic prospect that he can get Republicans in Congress to support the legislation he would need to turn his pronouncements into reality. They will do almost anything for Trump, but they won’t do that."
Further trouble could be caused by the Democratic Party too, Krugman suggested, with "unsolicited advice" offered by the economist.
"He shouldn’t get any help unless he is prepared to offer something substantive he can actually deliver," Krugman wrote. "And it’s obvious what that 'something substantive' is: End the effort to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, restore its funding, and let it get back to doing its job."
"This would immediately help Americans with credit card debt, and many other struggling American families as well. No legislation would be required, since the CFPB was established by law — law Trump has been trying to defy. If Trump really wants to cap credit card interest rates, he should reach across the aisle and get legislation passed with Democratic support."
