Trump’s sluggish economy : Investigative Post

Analysis finds most campaign promises have not been met, which helps explain the president’s growing unpopularity. Also in this post: hot and cold real estate markets in WNY and poor reviews for Sabres home rink.

Donald Trump won election for a second term in part because a lot of voters thought he would be good for the economy. He’s been in office for a year. How is the economy doing?

The New York Times used data to look at eight sectors. 

Among the findings:

Grocery prices, on balance, have increased. Trump said they’d drop if he was elected.
Gas prices have dropped, but not as steeply as Trump promised on the campaign trail.
The cost of electricity has increased. Trump said he’d cut prices in half during his first year in office.
Manufacturing jobs have declined and wage growth in that sector has slowed. The auto industry has been especially hard hit.
The stock market has continued to grow, with the value of stocks up 16 percent over the course of last year.

On balance, The Times analysis said Trump has delivered on one of eight promises, marked some progress on three others and has nothing to show for four others. You’ll find all the details here, a gift link, as are all others in this post, so read on.

But wait, there’s more.

The value of the U.S. dollar has dropped, no small consideration for those of us living in a border town. And the U.S. trade deficit surged in November.

There’s one economic indicator that is way up, however. The personal wealth of the Trump family. Over the past year it has jumped by $1.4 billion. Here’s the story and, better yet, a video short that lays everything out.

A final word on Trump, courtesy of a round table discussion in The Times in which columnist David French made this observation:

We are witnessing the total breakdown of any meaningful system of accountability for federal officials. The combination of President Trump’s Jan. 6 pardons, his ongoing campaign of pardoning friends and allies, his politicized prosecutions and now his administration’s assurances that federal officers have immunity are creating a new legal reality in the United States. The national government is becoming functionally lawless, and the legal system is struggling to contain his corruption.

We’re tasting the bitter fruit of Trump’s dreadful policies, to be sure, but it’s worse than that. He’s exploiting years of legal developments that have helped insulate federal officials from both criminal and civil accountability. It’s as if we engineered a legal system premised on the idea that federal officials are almost always honest, and the citizens who critique them are almost always wrong. We’ve tilted the legal playing field against citizens and in favor of the government.

The Trump administration breaks the law, and also ruthlessly exploits all the immunities it’s granted by law. The situation is unsustainable for a constitutional republic.

It’s little wonder Trump’s standing with the public continues to worsen. The latest polling by the Pew Research Center found 61 percent disapprove of the job he’s doing vs. 37 percent who approve. When asked what they think of Trump’s plans and policies, only 27 percent said they supported most or all of them.  Another 20 percent said they supported some. Fifty-two percent said they support few or none.

In terms of local leadership, Mark Poloncarz is trying to raise his national profile in the Democratic party, with talk going so far as a possible run for president. He fancies himself another Pete Buttigieg. The Erie County executive is perhaps  positioning himself for a role in a presumed Democratic administration come 2029. 

Meanwhile, Mayor Sean Ryan is catching some heat for the city’s response to recent snow storms. I’m among those not impressed with the city’s snow removal efforts, but Ryan inherited a mess of a public works department that is going to take time to turn around.

Buffalo Business First published housing sales prices for the fourth quarter of last year and here’s what’s hot and what’s not.

The highest average sales prices were $638,226 in Clarence Center (Zip code 14032), $579,853 in Clarence (14031), $496,933 in Elma (14059), $467,614 in Youngstown (14174) and $465,543 in East Aurora (14052).

The lowest average sales prices were $146,333 in Niagara Falls (14301), $146,984 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga (14211), $153,139 in Jamestown (14701), $179,120 in Dunkirk (14048) and $197,361 in Buffalo (14212).

What are the strongest home buyer markets nationally? Read on.

Our downtown arena was ranked the second worst rink in the National Hockey League, according to a survey of fans and hockey writers conducted by The Athletic. Factors included location, amenities, affordability and atmosphere.

Wrote The Athletic:

KeyBank was a fun place to watch games 20 years ago, when the Sabres were a top team and the building was rocking. All the years of losing have obviously had an impact on the fans. Even with Buffalo winning again, however, there are plenty of complaints about how far the arena and in-game experience have declined.

Fans voted KeyBank last for amenities and third-last for atmosphere, with many filling our survey responses with colorful descriptions of how bad the seats are (both in the stands and the bathrooms!).

I’ve been a Sabres season ticket holder since 1987 and typically attend 15 to 20 home games a year, so I know of what I’m about to speak. 

Affordability is a mixed bag: tickets are reasonable, concessions ridiculous, both in terms of prices and quality. Think $18 beers and ice cream sandwiches for $11 and change. 

The arena hasn’t been updated in, like, forever. The same photos of past Sabres stars have lined the hallways for, like, forever. It’s been a big deal when they painted the concrete floors in the hallways.

Worst of all is the so-called “in game entertainment.” It used to be good, laced with humor, when Tom Golisano and Larry Quinn ran the show. Now, fans are subjected to inane games and music blasted at ear-shattering levels.

Bruce Springsteen released a protest song last week about what’s happening in Minneapolis. The Boss doesn’t hold back.

posted 44 minutes ago – February 2, 2026