Trump calls for cap on credit card interest rates in latest appeal to affordability concerns

By Luciana Lopez, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump on Friday called for a one-year cap on credit card interest rates of 10%, saying the American public is being “ripped off” in a Truth Social post.

Trump called for the cap to come into effect on January 20, the one-year anniversary of his return to the White House. But he did not specify how a cap might happen, including whether he was calling for voluntary participation from credit card companies or looking for government mechanisms to enforce his proposal.

In his post, Trump cited “AFFORDABILITY!” The issue has become a source of frustration for many Americans, as years of accumulated inflation have heaped on price pressures. While many wealthier Americans have enjoyed years of double-digit stock market gains, advancing home prices and rising wages, those earning less have been squeezed by the combination of higher prices, debt and a slowing job market.

Trump has turned to populist economic announcements on social media to try to convince Americans that he’s making headway on the issue. On Thursday, for example, he posted about ordering “my representatives” to buy mortgage bonds to try to lower home costs; on Wednesday, he wrote about banning institutional investors from snapping up single-family homes.

So far, though, Americans don’t seem persuaded. In CNN’s most recent poll on the economy, 61% of Americans said Trump’s policies have “worsened economic conditions in this country.”

In his Friday post, Trump also blamed his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, for high credit card interest rates. Biden approached credit cards from a different angle: He sought to cap most credit card late fees at $8.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at the time estimated that would save families more than $10 billion a year by cutting fees from an average of $32.

But a federal judge blocked that effort, and the Trump administration has worked to dismantle the CFPB. The watchdog agency, which conducts oversight over the financial services industries and responds to consumer complaints, has been a target of conservatives, including Trump, for years.

CNN has reached out to the White House and the American Bankers Association for comment.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

CNN’s Matt Egan also contributed reporting.

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