Former Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill said Monday that Americans were not “smart enough” to keep President Donald Trump away from the White House.
“Yes, yes, the Wall Street Journal may say the United States is smart enough to understand this better. MSNBC analysts.
She is responding to an article from the WSJ editorial board that criticized Trump and his tariff policies and accused the president of "all Kamala Harris of demanding retail giants not raise prices."
McCaskill's comments were held during a panel discussion at MSNBC's "Deadline: The White House" that focused on concerns about higher prices after the president said big retailers like Walmart should "eat the tariffs."
Bessent says Walmart will absorb "some tariffs" after talking to retailers
MSNBC analyst and former Democratic lawmaker Claire McCaskill said the United States is not "smart enough" to keep Trump away from the White House. (Screen shot/MSNBC)
McCaskill continued: "But there are a lot of Americans who don't know this because their algorithms intentionally don't feed them politics because they don't want to hear that. But do you know what they all know? They all know the higher prices."
She added: "They will all know that they're spending more at Wal-Mart than they did last year. They're all knowing that their 401(k)s are all falling down. They're all knowing that and there's nothing Trump can do about it."
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon warned of potential price increases on Thursday, citing tariffs.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that the retail giant would absorb some tariffs after talking to McMillon.
MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace responded to McCaskill's argument that some Americans are paying close attention to the news while others do not.
"I have read polls that separate Americans in this way. People keep an eye on the news and God bless those people. These are our daily audiences. They are policy. They know more about the many things we talk about. I'm more responses than I see, and they don't follow the news. This is the first time I've read polls, I read a person, I think about it, I think about it, but I'm my #me, I want to. Burns," Wallace said.
In May, U.S. consumer sentiment fell to May's near-historical record, which is inflation concerns, tariff uncertainty
The Walmart logo can be seen outside a Walmart store in Burbank, California on August 15, 2022. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
After Trump won the election in November, McCaskill admitted that the president "knows our country better" than Democrats.
"I think we have to admit that Donald Trump knows our country better than we do," McCaskill said. "I think he found anger - frankly, fear - stronger than the better angels that attract people. Anger and fear will play a role in this election. Whether you're afraid of immigration or trans people, he knows that."
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President Donald Trump spoke at an event, announcing that he would listen to it on Wednesday, April 2, 2025 at the White House Rose Garden in Washington with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
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She added: "And I think we all think that everyone's angels will have the upper hand. It turns out that better angels are on vacation when Donald Trump goes down the escalator. They are not back yet."