Follow me for a second.

For years, inflation was treated as the ultimate scoreboard.

Higher gas prices meant failure.

Higher grocery bills meant failure.

Higher rent meant failure.

Every receipt was political evidence.

Then power changes hands.

And suddenly the standard changes too.

Now the question is not:

Are prices rising?

It is:

Did prices rise less than expected?

Not:

Is inflation too high?

But:

Was the inflation report in line with forecasts?

That may make sense to economists.

It does not make sense to a family filling up a gas tank.

May CPI came in at 4.2% year over year.

Energy was up 23.5%.

Gasoline was up 40.5%.

And the spin is:

Good news, because it could have been worse.

That is the part worth noticing.

The standard.

Because once loyalty becomes stronger than principle, every failure can be reframed as success.

Inflation is bad when the other side owns it.

Inflation is manageable when your side owns it.

Deficits are reckless when the other side owns them.

Deficits are necessary when your side owns them.

Executive power is tyranny when the other side uses it.

Executive power is strength when your side uses it.

That is how politics breaks people.

Not all at once.

One adjusted standard at a time.

So here is the simple test:

If 4.2% inflation and 40% higher gas prices would have made you angry under Biden, they should at least make you skeptical under Trump.

If they do not, then inflation was never really the issue.

The issue was who got blamed.