Republicans are dismissing affordability. That could be a problem in

Voters are worried about the cost of living. Comments from the GOP this week are not likely to console them.

President Donald Trump, in a Wednesday interview, said that the word “affordability” was “devised” by Democrats to disparage him. The Republican National Committee sent out a fundraising text attributed to Vice President JD Vance that said groceries “cost what they cost.” And Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., who won the nomination for a full Senate term on Tuesday night, disparaged federally-run universal healthcare before recalling with nostalgia her parents heading to work even if they were sick.

The set of comments over the past 24 hours exemplifies the challenges ahead for Republicans as they race to save their majorities in Congress in the midterm election, which looms less than 10 weeks away. Democrats are hammering Republicans on the campaign trail over the cost of living, which remains stubbornly high amid the war with Iran. The White House and Republicans also have few levers to pull to remedy affordability concerns immediately.

Voters are also loud and clear that affordability is their top concern in this election. Respondents to CNBC’s most recent All America Economic survey said the cost of food and groceries was voters’ top concern, and Democrats held a 7 percentage point lead on handling that issue.

Personal consumption expenditures price index data released Wednesday rose .2% from June, leaving the annual inflation rate at 3.7%. The report, released by the Commerce Department, also showed inflation-adjusted consumer spending was flat from the month prior, compared with a .4% gain in June.

Political analysts say the comments from top Republicans risk coming across as tone-deaf to voters struggling with high prices.

“”Republicans are driving the car straight into an affordability wall at full throttle, and they’re yelling that the barrier is just a media hoax,” said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center. “Well it’s not, it’s a barrier, and all the while the tariff policies and the conflicts are actively cutting the brakes.”

Republicans may learn the same lesson Democrats did in 2024, he told CNBC.

“To be fair, the same thing happened in 2024,” Paleologos said. “[Joe] Biden’s people kept talking about the metrics on the dashboard, bragging to voters about horsepower and top speed when the middle class was riding on flat tires.”

The Republican National Committee didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the party’s economic messaging.

Trump’s comments on Wednesday came during an interview with Glenn Beck, a political ally and radio host. Beck asked the president to respond to Americans who believe there is an “affordability crisis.”

In response, the president said that “affordability is…