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Long before Donald Trump entered the White House, he had a pitch for Bill Clinton — and Clinton warned him that ordinary Americans could end up footing the bill.
At a campaign rally in Tupelo, Mississippi, on Oct. 30, Clinton recalled a time when the two were on friendlier terms.
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“I’ve known President Trump a long time. We used to have quite a friendly relationship 24 years ago. We’d play golf,” Clinton said (1).
And there was one idea Trump kept bringing up.
“Even then, he believed in these tariffs,” Clinton said. “He kept saying, ‘We’re the biggest, strongest, richest country in the world. Why don’t we just put a bunch of tariffs on everybody else and stop paying taxes altogether?'”
“I said, ‘Well, because Don,'” Clinton recalled telling him, pausing to explain that back then, Trump was Donald, not Mr. President.
“I said, ‘Because these people don’t just eat the tariffs. They just charge the people who buy the stuff, whatever it is. So, we pay the tariffs,'” he continued.
Did Trump listen? In Clinton’s retelling, “just like now, he didn’t hear what he didn’t want to hear.”
Economists generally view tariffs as a double-edged sword.
On one hand, they can protect domestic industries by making imported goods more expensive, giving local manufacturers a competitive edge. On the other hand, higher tariffs may result in increased costs for consumers, as companies pass on the extra expenses. This can lead to inflation, eroding household purchasing power and raising the cost of living.
Shoppers are already seeing some of those costs at checkout. In an April analysis, Federal Reserve researchers estimated (2) that tariffs imposed through November 2025 had raised core goods prices by 3.1% by February 2026. They found that the price effects built gradually, giving shoppers a reason to pay attention even after the initial headlines fade.
Clinton also pointed to a separate hit to household budgets.
“Then you got these higher gas prices,” he said. “That’s the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz.”
AAA (3) puts the national average for regular gas at about $4.15 a gallon at the time of writing, up nearly 37% from a year ago. Diesel is up about 71% over the same period, even after easing from its September record of about $6.53 a gallon.
A jump at the pump is easy to spot. But inflation itself is nothing new — it has been chipping away at the buying power of Americans’ hard-earned dollars for decades.
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis (4), $100 in 2026 has the same purchasing power as just $11.65 did in 1970.
That’s right. $100 became less than $12.
The good news? Throughout history, savvy investors have found ways to shield their wealth from inflation’s bite — no matter who sits in the White House.
Here’s a look at three time-tested strategies.
Own something Washington can’t print
When it comes to preserving wealth and fighting inflation, few assets have stood the test of time like gold.
Its appeal is simple: unlike fiat currencies, the yellow metal can’t be printed at will by central banks. This inherently limited supply can help it store value.
Gold is also considered the ultimate safe haven. It’s not tied to any one country, currency or economy, and in times of economic turmoil or geopolitical uncertainty, investors often flock to it — driving prices higher.
Ray Dalio, founder of the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, has repeatedly highlighted gold’s role in a resilient portfolio.
“People don’t have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio,” Dalio told CNBC last year. “When bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier.”
Over the past five years, as inflation continued to chip away at the purchasing power of the dollar, gold has climbed 121%.
Other prominent voices see further potential. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has said that in this environment, gold can “easily” rise to $10,000 an ounce.
One way to invest in gold that can also provide significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Goldco.
Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it a compelling potential option for those wanting to ensure their retirement funds are diversified during rough economic times.
Goldco offers free shipping and access to a library of retirement resources. Plus, the company will match up to 10% of qualified purchases in free silver.
If you’re curious whether this is the right investment to diversify your portfolio, you can download your free gold and silver information guide today.
A time-tested income play
Gold isn’t the only asset investors turn to during inflationary times. Real estate has also proven to be a powerful hedge.
That’s because when inflation rises, property values often increase as well, reflecting the higher costs of materials, labor and land. At the same time, rental income tends to go up, providing landlords with a revenue stream that adjusts for inflation.
Over the past 10 years, the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index (5) has jumped by 84%, reflecting strong demand and limited housing supply.
Of course, high home prices can make buying a home more challenging, especially with mortgage rates still elevated. And being a landlord isn’t exactly hands-off work — managing tenants, maintenance and repairs can quickly eat into your time (and returns).
The good news? You don’t need to buy a property outright — or deal with leaky faucets — to invest in real estate today. Platforms like mogul provide an easier way to get exposure to this income-generating asset class.
This real estate investment platform offers fractional ownership in blue-chip rental properties, giving its investors the monthly rental income, real-time appreciation and tax benefits of owning a property — without the need for a hefty down payment or late-night tenant calls.
Founded by former Goldman Sachs real estate investors, the team handpicks the top 1% of single-family rental homes nationwide for you, letting you gain access to institutional-quality offerings for a fraction of the usual cost.
Each property undergoes a rigorous vetting process, requiring a minimum 12% return even in downside scenarios. Across the board, the platform features an average annual IRR of 18.8%. Their cash-on-cash yields, meanwhile, average between 10% and 12% annually. Offerings often sell out in under three hours, with investments typically ranging between $15,000 and $40,000 per property.
Sign up for an account and browse available properties here to start investing today.
Warren Buffett’s inflation playbook
Investing legend Warren Buffett knows a thing or two about navigating inflation, having managed Berkshire Hathaway’s stock portfolio through the double-digit inflation of the 1970s and developed plenty of insight into the types of businesses that can hold up when consumer prices surge.
In his 1981 letter to shareholders (6), Buffett pointed to two characteristics that can make a business especially resilient in an inflationary environment: The ability to increase prices easily and the ability to handle more business without requiring large amounts of new capital.
In other words, companies with strong pricing power and relatively modest capital needs can be better positioned to protect their profitability as costs rise.
That helps explain why the right stocks can serve as a long-term hedge against inflation. But Buffett has also made clear that you don’t need to be an expert stock picker to participate in the market’s growth.
“In my view, for most people, the best thing to do is own the S&P 500 index fund,” Buffett has famously stated (7). He even made a $1 million bet for charity that, over the course of a decade, a simple S&P 500 index fund would outperform a basket of hand-picked hedge funds. His pick was a Vanguard S&P 500 index fund.
Of course, he won.
If you prefer this kind of hands-off approach to building wealth, Vanguard’s Digital Advisor puts the investing expertise of one of the world’s largest asset managers right at your fingertips.
It takes the guesswork out of investing by building a personalized portfolio for you using Vanguard’s well-known low-cost ETFs and mutual funds — then keeps things running smoothly with automatic rebalancing.
The platform also offers guidance on saving for retirement and lets you set additional goals as your life evolves.
It can even help you think through debt repayment strategies, potentially freeing up more cash to invest toward your long-term plans.
With a minimum investment of just $100, it’s an easy way to get started with professionally guided investing.
For every $10,000 in an all-index portfolio, you’ll pay approximately $15 to $16 per year.*
You can even test-drive the Vanguard experience with no advisory fees for the first 90 days.
*All investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of the money you invest.
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Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.
WTVA 9 News/ YouTube (1); U.S. Federal Reserve (2); AAA (3); Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis (4); S&P Global (5); Berkshire Hathaway (6); CNBC (7)
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
