WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim McGovern, the Massachusetts Democrat who serves as ranking member of the House Rules Committee, accused President Donald Trump on Thursday of deflecting responsibility for soaring housing costs, writing in a post on X that Trump is “still blaming Biden and Obama” even though he holds the presidency and his party controls Congress. McGovern pointed instead to Trump’s tariffs, the war with Iran and what he called “billionaires-first policies,” as the 30-year mortgage rate climbed to its highest level in years.
What McGovern Said
McGovern published the post at 11:39 a.m. on Oct. 8, 2026. It reads in full:
“He’s still blaming Biden and Obama. HE IS THE PRESIDENT. His party controls congress. It’s HIS stupid tariffs, illegal War, and lousy billionaires-first policies that are pushing housing costs to record highs. Unbelievable.”
McGovern’s post responded to a clip from Wednesday in the Oval Office. Asked by a reporter about mortgage rates reaching 7.49%, Trump said the Federal Reserve’s policymaking board “would like to see the country do badly,” and argued that interest rates should come down. He called Fed Chair Kevin Warsh “great” but described him as one vote among several policymakers, a group that includes appointees of former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
McGovern’s post makes four distinct points. The president is responsible for current conditions because he holds the office. Republicans control Congress. The tariffs, the war with Iran and the administration’s economic priorities are the drivers of higher housing costs. The reference to “record highs” is McGovern’s own characterization of housing costs and is not tied in the post to a specific statistic.
Mortgage Rates Have Risen for Seven Straight Weeks
Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 7.4% from 7.28% a week earlier, the seventh consecutive weekly increase. A year ago, the rate stood at 6.3%. The 15-year fixed rate climbed to 6.73% from 6.6%. The 7.49% figure Trump was asked about Wednesday came from a separate weekly survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association, which showed its 30-year average rising from 7.30%.
The 30-year rate crossed 7% in Freddie Mac’s survey on Sept. 24 for the first time since January 2025, when it averaged 7.03%. The increase has been steep. In a letter sent to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, said mortgage rates had risen from 5.99% at the end of February to a level above 7.5% in a daily index, adding about $361 to the monthly payment on a typical home. Warren’s office calculated that figure using a median home price of $429,100 and a 20% down payment.
Trump has previously promised relief. At an Economic Club of New York event in September 2024, he said mortgage rates could fall back to about 3%, or lower. In early January, he announced a plan to direct $200 billion in mortgage bond purchases to bring rates down, while blaming the Biden administration for what he called a broken economy and saying it had “absolutely destroyed” affordability.
What Is Actually Driving Rates Higher
Mortgage rates are not set by the Federal Reserve directly. They closely track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note. Warren’s letter states that the 10-year yield reached 5.34% on Sept. 30, its highest level since 2002 and more than a full percentage point above where it stood on Feb. 27, before the war with Iran began. The yield hovered around 5.22% on Thursday afternoon.
Economists point to several overlapping forces. Joel Berner, a senior economist who commented on Thursday’s data, described a “wicked brew” of inflation expectations, a broad bond market selloff and rising federal deficits that require new debt issuance. Energy prices are a central piece. Since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran began in late February, investors have worried that higher oil prices would keep inflation elevated. Warren’s letter cites federal data showing inflation, as measured by the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, rising from 2.8% in February to 3.4% in August, and cites a Congressional Budget Office estimate that the Iran war accounts for roughly 40% of the second-quarter increase in inflation.
The Federal Reserve is also a factor, though an indirect one. The central bank raised its benchmark rate by a quarter point on Sept. 16, and minutes of that meeting, released Wednesday, showed that most officials believed another hike was likely this year. The Fed’s two most senior voices on rates after Warsh, Vice Chair Philip Jefferson and New York Fed President John Williams, have indicated they may wait for more data before backing another increase.
The administration rejects the idea that its policies are responsible. Bessent has described rising borrowing costs as a “global phenomenon” and has said the United States has had the best-performing 10-year bond market since Trump took office. The Treasury Department announced on Aug. 19 that it would double the size of its long-end bond buyback operations, a move Warren’s letter calls unsuccessful at lowering yields and which she asked Bessent to explain by Oct. 21.
McGovern’s Record on Tariffs, the War and Costs
The Massachusetts congressman, who has represented his district since 1997, has tied the president’s trade and war policies to household costs before. In 2025, as Trump announced new tariffs on dozens of countries, McGovern said the policy was “going to make the cost of living even worse.” In a July 2026 interview, he called the Iran war “not only risky,” but “illegal” and “costly,” and said it resembled Iraq, a “quagmire” with “no way for us to succeed.”
McGovern’s reference to “illegal” tariffs echoes a legal ruling. On Feb. 20, the Supreme Court held that Trump had violated federal law by imposing sweeping global tariffs unilaterally. The administration then turned to Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act to impose a 10% tariff on most imports. Congressional Democrats later released a study estimating that the administration’s import taxes would cost American households an average of $2,512 in 2026.
The war has also become a fiscal and congressional flashpoint. The Pentagon has estimated the cost of the Iran conflict at $43.6 billion to date, according to figures cited in Warren’s letter. In June, Trump asked Congress for a supplemental request of nearly $88 billion, most of it to cover war costs and replenish munitions. Also in June, the House passed a War Powers Resolution on Iran after four Republicans joined Democrats.
The Political Stakes Ahead of the Midterms
The housing and affordability fight is landing weeks before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. On the prediction market Polymarket, the odds that Democrats win the House stand at 91%, with Republicans at 9%.
The pressure is also showing up in the housing market itself. Berner said pending home sales fell year over year in both August and September, even before rates crossed 7%, and that sellers are cutting prices at a pace not seen in four years. Freddie Mac’s chief economist said in August that listing prices were modestly below year-ago levels and that inventory had improved, a sign that the squeeze comes from financing costs more than from rising sticker prices. Mortgage rates remain far below the record set in October 1981, when they exceeded 18%.
The next test comes soon. Warren has asked Bessent for answers by Oct. 21, the Fed is expected to hold its next policy meeting later this month, and Freddie Mac will release its next weekly reading next Thursday.