A MAGA host has turned on President Donald Trump, declaring that his war in Iran is leaving Americans “broke.”
NewsNation host Batya Ungar-Sargon, who has shown table-banging support for Trump’s dodgiest policies, changed her tune during a monologue for her show on Sunday evening.
Behind the chyron “Mr. President, we need help,” the journalist, who attended high school in Israel, railed against the war from an economic standpoint, rather than an ethical one.
“Mr. President, your supporters are hurting,” she began the impassioned speech.
“People who voted for you three times, who would walk over Legos covered in hot coals to vote for you, are broke. Some are skipping meals. Others are buying canned chicken in bulk because that’s all they can afford. The cost of food and gas is just so high. People are finding it impossible to pay for their kids’ after-school sports once they fill up the car with gas,” she said. “People who support you and support the war in Iran, who were willing to pay a little more to make sure our grandkids don’t have to live with the threat of a nuclear-armed terror state, who are willing to pay a little more for the possibility of reshoring our great manufacturing base with tariffs. Well, they’ve paid all they can. Some are expressing anger and frustration. They feel that they voted for you to bring down the costs.”
Ungar-Sargon continued: “Others are just quietly skipping meals. And contrary to what some in your administration keep saying, it’s not just vibes. Inflation is eating up wage growth and then some. Gas is $4.50 a gallon as we head into the summer travel season. The producer price index is up 6 percent as we hit… head into grilling season. Savings are at an all-time low. 13 percent of credit card balances are now over 90 days delinquent, the highest since 2011. You keep saying that the stock market is doing great, and that is true, but the gains of the economy and nearly all consumer spending are concentrated in the top 10 percent. Everyone else is broke. You keep saying that gas will plummet when Operation Epic Fury is over and there’s a new memorandum of understanding on the table. But even if there is a deal, it will take a lot of time for gas to come down.”
Talks with Iran remain ongoing, stuck at an impasse over conditions, including the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of highly enriched uranium from Iran. Gas prices have jumped 50 percent since the U.S. and Israel launched the war, pushing the national average to nearly $4.50 a gallon, according to AAA.
“And in the meantime,” Ungar-Sargon continued, “the American people need something to get them through this slog. Your supporters need help, Mr. President, and they need it from you. We brought in $200 billion in tariff revenue. Couldn’t some of that be shared with Americans struggling to put food on the table?”
The White House has been contacted for comment.
