Former Trump economic adviser Steve Moore said on “Mornings with Maria” that Democrats are losing the Schumer Shutdown battle, warning that the impasse has limited economic impact but that government spending poses a real threat to America’s future.
FIRST ON FOX: Former Trump economic adviser and Unleash Prosperity’s Steve Moore has sounded the alarm over a plan by Senators Josh Hawley and Bernie Sanders to cap credit card interest rates at 10%.
Moore argues that while their proposal may be politically popular, it could harm millions of Americans and suggested that President Trump might also not support the measure.
“Trump has a bit of a populist streak economically,” Moore told FOX Business. “I don’t know his position on this, but I could see him saying it’s not fair to low-income people.”
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A woman holding credit cards. (iStock/iStock)
According to Moore, affordability now remains a top concern for voters.
“Affordability is and has been the No. 1 issue in the election, and I would say it’s probably the issue that led to a big Democratic victory on Tuesday,” he added.
In its new report, Why Interest Rate Caps Are Harmful to Consumers, Moore’s watchdog group highlights the growing household credit card debt crisis and warns that limiting interest rates could backfire.
He says such credit card laws would deprive millions of low-income Americans of access to credit, while leading banks to cut rewards programs, raise fees and tighten eligibility.
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A credit card is placed in a credit card machine to process payments. (Frédéric J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“There’s a lot of talk in Congress about reducing costs for consumers by reducing credit card fees and interest rates, and when they tried to do that with debit cards, it didn’t work,” Moore confirmed.
“It would deny people with lower credit scores access to credit and debit cards.”
Moore’s report notes that 82% of American households now have at least one credit card, up from 45% in 1980, showing how access to credit has become a central part of American life.
With more than 500 million credit cards in circulation, Moore warns the proposed cap could reverse decades of progress.
“Today, 83 percent of Americans have at least one credit card, and most have two or three. That’s a good thing for low-income people,” he said.
“But many of them will lose access to credit cards, points and other rewards.”
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Stephen Moore, senior economics fellow at the Heritage Foundation, left, accompanied by President Donald Trump, speaks in the Oval Office August 7, 2025, in Washington, DC (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Moore further warned that the plan would disproportionately harm those with lower credit scores.
“Low-income people in general, not always, but generally have lower credit scores, so they’re at higher credit risk. It will save some people money, yes, but it will deprive low-income people of credit and it won’t do them any favors,” he said.
Moore also urged Americans to be more careful about debt.
“It’s a financial literacy issue,” he said. “People should know that there are better ways to borrow than maxing out their credit cards.
“It’s a big problem in America that people accumulate a lot of credit. So one of the things we need in this country is financial literacy and for people to know not to do that.”
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In his report, Moore also draws parallels to past regulatory failures, such as Illinois’ 36 percent loan cap, warning that new restrictions could “revive loan sharking” by pushing desperate borrowers toward predatory lenders.
“The system is not broken,” Moore said. “But rules that make cards less profitable and more vulnerable to losses threaten a well-functioning and economically vital market.”
