Trump hits the road to sell economic wins as Republicans brace for high-stakes midterm showdown

Facing a rough political climate as his party aims to hold its House and Senate majorities in this year’s midterm elections, President Donald Trump on Tuesday kicks off what the White House says will be weekly stops in states with key ballot box showdowns.

It’s part of the president’s push to showcase he’s working to combat rising prices, a top issue on the minds of Americans. And as the Trump administration reels amid two fatal shootings by federal agents in Minnesota this month of U.S. citizens protesting aggressive tactics to deport millions of undocumented migrants, it’s also an effort to pivot to the economy from immigration.

Trump’s first stop is Iowa, a one-time Midwestern battleground turned red-leaning state the president carried by double digits in 2024 where Republicans are now playing defense as they defend open Senate and gubernatorial seats and three competitive GOP-controlled House districts.

In suburban Des Moines, Trump will visit a local business, meet with lawmakers and deliver an address on the economy.

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“The economy is good. It’s all good. Prices are coming way down, and we have a lot of very positive news,” Trump touted as he departed for Iowa.

And ahead of the trip, a White House official told Fox News Digital, “Inflation has cooled, economic growth is accelerating and real wages are up for American workers.”

Deep concerns over inflation boosted Trump and Republicans to sweeping victories at the ballot box in 2024 as they won back the White House and Senate and keep their House majority.

But Democrats say their decisive victories in November’s 2025 elections and their performances in special elections and other ballot box showdowns last year were fueled by their laser focus on affordability amid persistent inflation.

The president’s approval on the economy has consistently hovered in negative territory since March and has dragged down his overall approval ratings during his first year back in the White House.

Among the most recent national polls, a Wall Street Journal survey conducted earlier this month put Trump’s approval rating on the economy at 44%-54%, and he stood at 35%-56% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll in the field this past weekend.

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“Donald Trump has tanked the economy for working families, making the cost-of-living an inescapable hell for millions of Americans. Everyday Americans are drowning under the weight of rising costs, flat wages, high unemployment and record layoffs — it’s no wonder they’re concerned about making ends meet,” Democratic National Committee Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer argued in a statement.

But The Wall Street Journal poll indicated that congressional Republicans had an 11-point advantage over their Democratic rivals when it came to which party was better equipped to handle the economy.

Iowa is friendly ground for Trump, who convincingly won the state in his two presidential victories and one re-election defeat.

But a memo from Democratic National Committee (DNC) Deputy Communications Director Abhi Rahman claimed, “However hard Trump tries to explain away his failing economy, it’s abundantly clear that Americans aren’t buying it, especially in Iowa, where Trump’s policies are raising costs for Iowans, devastating Iowa’s agricultural economy, and destroying thousands of jobs that working Iowans rely on.”

The White House disagrees, with the official arguing that “Iowans are better off with President Trump and Republican leadership,” noting that gas prices in the state “ranked the second lowest in the nation.”

And pointing to the various tax cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Trump’s domestic legislative achievement so far in his second term, the official said, “Iowans could see their wages rise up to $61,000 over the next four years.”

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The GOP, as it works to hold its congressional majorities, is dealing with a low propensity issue: MAGA voters who don’t always go to the polls when Trump’s name isn’t on the ballot.

But even though he’s not on the ballot this year, Trump pledged last week that he’ll be on the campaign trail “a lot” on behalf of fellow Republicans running in the midterms.

Trump made stops last month and earlier this month in the key battleground states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Michigan to highlight his accomplishments on the economy.

And the weekly trips advertised by the White House are a big change from Trump’s first term, when the president didn’t start his campaign travel blitz until Labor Day.

Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters emphasized in a Fox News Digital interview earlier this month that “the President of the United States is our secret weapon… He’s laser focused.”

“We got to make sure we turn our voters out, and we got to make sure that we have people energized. And there’s nobody that can energize our base more than President Trump,” Gruters added.

And the White House official said that the president “has always been most in his element when he’s interacting with everyday Americans, and the President’s domestic travel will allow him to most effectively underscore how this Administration has and continues to deliver economic prosperity for the American people.”

Democrats are just fine with Trump hitting the road.

“Trump has historically low approval ratings because he has put America last, sold out working families to hand out favors to billionaires, and made life unaffordable. Hitting the road will only remind Americans of his failures and force GOP candidates to tie themselves to his cratering presidency,” DNC chair Ken Martin argued in a statement to Fox News Digital.