President Donald Trump arrived at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, Nov. 25 for a Thanksgiving holiday stay at a crucible moment for his second administration and the MAGA movement.
The presidential visit, the 15th to Palm Beach this term, will take place as Trump gave Ukraine an ultimatum to accept by later this week a peace proposal to end the nearly four-year-long conflict. The president’s initial 28-point deal, reportedly negotiated by Palm Beach County real estate investor and Trump foreign policy advisor Steve Witkoff, came under withering bipartisan broadsides by critics who said it had been prepared by Moscow.
Over the weekend, however, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the former Florida U.S. senator, said his talks with the Ukrainians on the offer had closed gaps. Ahead of his return, Trump wrote optimistically on his social media platform that “is it really possible that big progress is being made in Peace Talks” and that “something good just may be happening.”
The president has earmarked ending the brutal war as a top foreign policy goal. A breakthrough in Eastern Europe would be an A-list win amid sour narratives at the Trump White House throughout much of this month.
The potential peace pact has bumped a volatile confrontation with Venezuela off the headlines. A CBS News/YouGov poll conducted from Nov. 19-21 showed that 70% of those asked opposed a military action in the South American country.
Thanksgiving holiday feast focuses Americans on rise in living costs
The annual feast of gratitude has focused Americans’ attention on grocery store prices and seemingly unabated spikes in the cost of living. The president has been dismissive about people’s concerns over inflation saying he does not want to hear any more complaints about “affordability.”
Palm Beach County food pantries say they have been overwhelmed this November with people seeking assistance at even higher numbers than those seen during COVID-19. One official said he has seen “unprecedented” need.
A Nov. 19 Fox News poll placed Trump’s approval level at 41%, near an all time low as 76% of respondents reported having negative feelings about the economy. Stingingly, the latter percentage is 6 points worse than how Fox News pollsters reported Americans viewed the economy at the end of President Joe Biden’s term.
Many Americans are also paying more for health insurance. In his adopted home state, the 4.7 million or so Floridians depending on Obamacare policies will see their out-of-pocket costs rise sharply in 2026 as tax credits they benefited from will expire just as the average amount insurers charging for plans increase nationwide by about 26%, according to estimates.
The president has touted a drop in energy costs, but that does not appear to be the case in Florida. On Nov. 23, AAA – The Auto Club Group reported that gasoline prices in Florida stood at a statewide average of $3.10 per gallon, a figure that was 15 cents higher than in October and 2 cents more than a year ago.
Some 12 million Florida customers of Florida, Power & Light will soon be paying more for electricity, too. State regulators have approved one of the highest rate increases ever. As of Jan. 1, a typical monthly bill will increase by $2.50 to $136.64, with some rising as high as averaging close to $150 per month.
Trump policies questioned in friendly corners, from churches to Truth Social
Trump’s immigration crackdown has been aggressively pursued in Florida, with Gov. Ron DeSantis lauding as a national model the state’s deputizing of local law enforcement as immigration agents. This summer the governor boasted that 20% of of immigrant apprehensions had been conducted in Florida.
But Florida’s Catholic bishops have criticized the crackdown with Miami’s archbishop, writing the policy is lacking in “common decency,” an eyebrow-raising move given that Catholics favored Trump more than 60% in the 2024 election. This month, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops also spoke out by issuing a document criticizing the Trump administration’s campaign to round up immigrants.
“We oppose the indiscriminate mass deportation of people,” said the statement approved by bishops in an overwhelming 216 to 5 vote. “We pray for an end to dehumanizing rhetoric and violence, whether directed at immigrants or at law enforcement.”
There have also been fissures and signs of discontent, if disquiet, within the president’s Make America Great Again movement.
A sniping contest with now outgoing U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, erupted into a social media brawl during Trump’s last Mar-a-Lago visit on Nov. 14-16.
The dispute drew a backlash even on Truth Social where nearly all comments still extol the president and his policies.
“Donald, you’re turning your base against you,” wrote one user. “I know you love this country and I would choose you 1000 times a day 10,000 times on Sunday but come on now the childish bickering needs to stop.”
Others have been unsettled, saying they see this Trump administration tilting toward and favoring the wealthiest and powerful players and not as concerned about the plight of the rank-and-file. One fault line is Trump’s support for artificial intelligence proponents.
This month, the president crowed “investment in AI is helping to make the U.S. Economy the “HOTTEST” in the World” as he condemned “overregulation by the States” that he wrote is “threatening to undermine this Major Growth ‘Engine.'”
But a MAGA adherent on Truth Social pushed back on the president’s claims.
“AI is going to take away millions of jobs from American born citizens,” the user wrote. “I’m sorry. If you want no regulations on AI, which will bring about our demise, then there should be ZERO regulations on ANYTHING in America. It just doesn’t make sense. Let other countries get destroyed with AI. I am sorry to go against you on this topic, but I vehemently disagree.”
Trump in Palm Beach also a reminder this was Epstein’s home as well
Trump’s arrival in his home county will again be a reminder that the Palm Beaches were also the home of serial child abuser and trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. A number of emails and other papers that have served to remind the public, if not reveal, just how close Trump and Epstein were as Palm Beach neighbors.
They have been fodder for a seemingly endless stream of social media videos and memes, and late night TV show commentary, that have clearly irked the president. Trump has been decidedly unsuccessful in quieting the clamor for full disclosure, let alone convincing broad swaths of Americans that the matter is a “hoax.”
Congress has approved legislation ordering the release of all government investigatory files, evidence and findings, a measure Trump signed into law. But the president has continued to denigrate the issue and he offered his support for the bill’s passage only after it was clear the votes to approve it were in hand.
Trump has repeatedly insisted the push to make the Epstein documents public is a Democratic political play, but it was the MAGA rank-and-file who largely demanded it.
“SIR! I KNOW IN MY HEART YOU ARE GOOD AND NOT EVIL. SHOW IT! STOP CALLING IT A HOAX AND STOP CALLING PATRIOTS TRAITORS. OR YOU WILL LOSE US ALL AND EVERYTHING,” wrote one Truth Social user in all capital letters as Trump does for emphasis. “URGENT. MELANIA AND BARRON PLEASE, PLEASE HELP HIM.”
Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump says no inflation this Thanksgiving but Floridians feel squeezed
Reporting by Antonio Fins, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
