The Consumer Confidence Index dropped sharply in November, as disillusioned Americans indicated unease in the Trump economy amid rising prices, steady inflation, tariffs, increasing unemployment, and surging layoffs that are making finding a job more difficult.

The Consumer Confidence Index dropped 6.8 points to its lowest level since April, and consumer expectations “tumbled,” CNBC reported on Tuesday.

“Consumers were notably more pessimistic about business conditions six months from now,” said Dana Peterson, the Conference Board’s chief economist. “Mid-2026 expectations for labor market conditions remained decidedly negative, and expectations for increased household incomes shrunk dramatically, after six months of strongly positive readings.”

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Now, just six percent of workers say that jobs are “plentiful,” down from 28.6% one month ago.

“Consumers’ write-in responses pertaining to factors affecting the economy continued to be led by references to prices and inflation, tariffs and trade, and politics, with increased mentions of the federal government shutdown,” Peterson also said in a statement, according to Bloomberg News.

The news comes just as another indicator of a weakening jobs market shows that “private companies shed an average 13,500 jobs over the past four weeks,” CNBC noted, citing data from payrolls processing firm ADP.

“That’s an acceleration from the 2,500 jobs a week lost in the last update a week ago,” CNBC also reported.

Other data also suggest a troubled economy.

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“Government figures out earlier on Tuesday showed retail sales moderated in September after several robust months,” Bloomberg added.

“As for November, the Conference Board’s report showed buying plans for big-ticket items, including cars and major appliances, declined. Home-buying plans also fell.”

Alex Jacquez, Chief of Policy and Advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative and a former Biden White House official, summed up his thoughts on the current situation:

“Good news: fewer people think we’re headed toward a recession. Bad news: more people think we’re already in one.”

READ MORE: GOP Lawmaker Suggests US ‘About to Go In’ to Venezuela for Oil

Image via Reuters 

President Donald Trump was set to announce a two-year extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies, as soon as Monday, to help fix Obamacare premiums that are set to skyrocket, but the White House pulled the announcement and delayed its plans in part because House Republicans reportedly felt “left out.”

The Trump White House is now delaying announcing any health care plan — it “will not be this week,” reported PBS Newshour’s Lisa Desjardins.

“This as Republican members of Congress, including senior members,” Desjardins wrote, “expressed outrage at being left out of any process on what they all know is a critical issue – affecting huge #s of constituents.”

READ MORE: GOP Lawmaker Suggests US ‘About to Go In’ to Venezuela for Oil

Desjardins added that House Republicans are directing their anger not only at the White House but at Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.

“This has been quickly rising and the idea of a WH-only sudden [health care] plan has rank and file fuming at their leader,” she added.

The Trump White House also delayed announcing any fix because House Republicans do not want to extend the Obamacare subsidy premiums, which the president’s plan would have done.

In response to pressure from the House GOP, Trump reportedly pulled the announcement.

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MS NOW’s Jake Traylor reported on Monday, “White House to delay healthcare proposal after significant congressional backlash.”

“According to two White House officials,” Traylor noted, “the announcement has been delayed, with one of those officials citing strong congressional backlash to Trump’s proposed plan.”

Some Democrats blasted Republicans for the delay.

“Yet another delay while Republicans wait to see if a health care plan will fall from the sky,” wrote U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI).

House Ways and Means Democrats added, “BREAKING: The 15 year waiting period for the GOP health care plan will NOT end today.”

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Image via Reuters

A Republican congresswoman says that the United States is about to “go in” to Venezuela and suggests one of the reasons is oil.

“The U.S. is considering dropping leaflets in Venezuela as the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, sources say,” CBS News reported.

U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) told Fox Business on Monday that she expects that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will succumb to U.S. pressure and step down.

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The Fox Business host told Salazar, “I would love to see a change in government. The dictators there rely on Venezuelan oil, but at the same time, a lot of Americans don’t want actual U.S. participation in regime change in Venezuela. They would much prefer the Venezuelans to do it on their own.”

“Maduro is not a brave boy,” said Salazar, who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

“So now that he has understood that he’s on that very nefarious list of the terrorist organizations, that the airspace above Venezuela has been closed off, and the commercial airlines from the United States are not flying, he’s understanding that we’re about to go in,” Salazar declared.

“He understands that he is, he has been our enemy for the last 25 years,” she noted, before explaining her thoughts on why the U.S. should “go in” to Venezuela.

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“Venezuela, for those Americans who do not understand why we need to go in — for three, basically for three reasons,” she said.

“Venezuela, for the American oil companies, will be a field day, because it will be more than a trillion dollars in economic activity. American companies can go in and fix all the oil pipe, the whole oil rigs, and everything that has to do with the Venezuelan petroleum companies, or everything that has to do with oil and the derivatives.”

She went on to say, “We’re going to be doing a favor to us, to our children, to our economy, to our oil companies to be able to liberate. And to Venezuelans who want to be free.”

Rep. Salazar on Venezuela: “We’re about to go in … we need to go in … Venezuela for the American oil companies will be a field day” pic.twitter.com/S8c3hsDxEv

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 24, 2025

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Image: Wikimedia Commons / Public domain