WASHINGTON — As the economy emerges as a likely defining issue in next year's midterm elections, President Donald Trump has wrestled with Americans' rising cost of living, declaring himself the "affordability president," then soon dismissing the issue as something that "does not mean anything to anybody."

At two White House events this week, the president accused Democrats of pushing a "fake narrative" about affordability to trick voters ahead of the election, calling them "great con people" who do not offer details about how they intend to lower prices.

"It's a con job. I think affordability is the greatest con job," Trump said Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Democrats on Capitol Hill are moving to shape an affordability-focused agenda ahead of the midterms, including a proposal to address rising housing costs.

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., will introduce legislation Thursday aimed at increasing the supply of affordable housing for low-income and middle-income families, expanding rental assistance and boosting funding for long-term housing and emergency homeless shelters, according to a draft copy of the bill reviewed by The Times.

"Of all the affordability challenges Americans face, housing is the most acute. This is certainly the case in California, but it's true across much of the country," Schiff said in an interview. "I want to see the Democratic Party be the party advocating for the next housing boom in America."

The 48-page bill — titled the Housing BOOM (Building Occupancy Opportunity for Millions) Act — proposes expanding federal tax credits to help finance the development and rehabilitation of affordable housing.

It would create a $10-billion annual loan fund and a $5-million annual grant program to expand affordable housing for middle-income families, as well as a federal grant program to convert hotels and unused residential properties into transitional housing or emergency homeless shelters. The proposal also calls for establishing a new office within the Department of Housing and Urban Development to protect people from eviction.

Schiff's proposal is a long shot in Congress, where Republicans control the House and Senate, and where any proposal championed by Schiff, a longtime Trump foe, is unlikely to get the president's approval. Still, Schiff says inaction on his proposal could be used against Republicans, arguing that a lack of of affordable housing is a "real problem" for Americans.

A recent report from the National Assn. of Realtors showed that Americans are taking longer to become first-time home buyers, with the median age hitting an all-time high of 40 in 2025. Part of the reason is that younger Americans are struggling to build wealth as prices rise and rents continue to spike.

Adding to the dilemma is a persistent national shortage of affordable housing, particularly for millions of low-income renters, according to a National Low-Income Housing Coalition report.

"If Republicans don't get on board, it will be a liability for them, just as healthcare has been," Schiff said.

The proposal is an example of how Democrats are shaping their midterm strategy with a heavy focus on lowering rising prices, a message that helped the Democratic Party secure election victories in key states last month and make significant gains in a deep-red district in Tennessee on Tuesday night.

The off-year election results have informed much of the new Democratic playbook, and have prompted Democratic leaders in the Senate and House to further embrace it as a policy agenda.

At a news conference Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both of New York, characterized Trump and Republicans are being out of touch with the working class.

"They are in a bubble. They don't get it," Schumer told reporters. "Well, Democrats know our job is to fight for the American people and to lower their costs."

Schumer and Jeffries said the immediate focus for Democrats is trying to negotiate a deal to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits, that if allowed to expire at the end of the year, will lead to the healthcare insurance premiums of millions of Americans to spike on New Year's Day.

Two weeks ago, the healthcare issue prompted the White House to get involved in negotiations with lawmakers, a move that was seen as a political Hail Mary for an increasingly divided party entering an election year. James Blair, a White House deputy chief of staff, said at the time the "president probably would like to go bigger than the Hill has the appetite for." Since then, negotiations have stalled.

The White House did not provide an update on the president's plan to address rising healthcare costs when asked on Wednesday. A White House spokesperson instead said in a statement that Trump has made "fixing Joe Biden's inflation and affordability crisis" a priority since his second term began in January.

"The con job here is Democrats now harping on the very affordability crisis they spent four years creating in the first place, an issue that they also have no real solutions for," the statement said.

Vice President JD Vance said at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that it was "absurd" to see Democrats talk about affordability, saying the Trump administration has been focused on addressing the economic situation Biden left.

"I think for congressional Democrats, in particular, if they want to talk about affordability, they ought to look in the mirror," Vance said. "We are fixing what they've broken. We're proud to do it. It's the job that we are elected to do. But I think 2026 is going to be the year where this economy really takes off."

Democrats, meanwhile, are starting to unveil policy plans that they say will help them counter that message.

Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Oakland, is planning to introduce a companion legislation to Schiff's housing bill in the House.

"When families can't afford to stay in their communities, when veterans sleep on our streets, when working people are one rent increase away from losing everything, that is a failure of police and political will," Simon said in a statement. "The Housing BOOM Act is a comprehensive answer to that failure."

Schiff said his pitch to expand the affordable housing supply is a crucial step in addressing what he says is an affordability crisis exacerbated by Trump's policies, whether it's an immigration crackdown or tariffs.

"If he continues to not deliver more housing, but actually raises the cost of housing by tariffs on building materials, by deporting construction workers, then he's only creating further problems from him and the Republican Party," Schiff said.

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