Steve Cortes, president of the League of American Workers (LAW), said the United States should refocus domestic policy priorities to reverse declines in consumer confidence and restore wage growth for working Americans ahead of the midterms.
“The pre-war trajectory was actually quite good. Real wages were growing. Trump-Bessent plan was really working for regular Americans. The war disrupted all of that, and I believe that this war is a war of choice, and we can choose to end it on terms that are reasonable to the United States and get back to that trajectory,” Cortes said in a NewsNation interview with Leland Vittert. “Focusing on the stock market is a mistake. I believe that a lot of regular Americans are starting to actually resent the stock market going higher now. End war. The second is to ramp up even further immigration enforcement. Those are two routes to prosperity.”
Cortes made the remarks as consumer sentiment has continued to decline amid White House challenges on economic messaging.
According to the University of Michigan, consumer sentiment fell for the third straight month as supply disruptions continued to boost gasoline prices. The index of consumer sentiment reached 44.8 in May, the lowest level in more than 50 years. Cost-of-living concerns were cited by most consumers, with lower-income groups experiencing steeper declines.
Despite the drop in consumer confidence, the White House has highlighted wage growth. Federal data show blue-collar workers saw real wages grow almost 2% in the first five months of President Trump’s second term—the largest increase under any administration in nearly 60 years.
Cortes founded LAW in 2022 and serves as its president. He also acts as senior political adviser and spokesman for CatholicVote and previously served as an adviser for President Trump, according to the group’s website.
