Full Breakdown
Las Vegas Restaurateur Turns on Trump Amid Rising Costs
By Drooid · · How we work
In this breakdown
01
Core Event
Javier Barajas, owner of Il Toro E La Capra in Las Vegas, Nevada, voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election after meeting the candidate on the campaign trail. He now says the president’s policies have left his restaurant “bust.”
02
Background & Context
Trump secured Nevada’s electoral votes with 50.6 % of the ballot, the first Republican win in the state in two decades. Since the election, consumer-price inflation has risen to 3.7 % year-over-year, up from 3.4 % in August and above the 3 % increase economists had expected. Barajas links the surge to higher diesel costs and the ongoing Iran conflict, which he says has pushed prices higher, including a $42 ribeye steak on his menu.
Visual evidence
Images from the story
03
Data & Statistics
- Inflation: 3.7 % annual increase, exceeding the 3 % rise economists predicted.
- August inflation: 3.4 % year-over-year.
- Menu price highlight: $42 ribeye steak.
04
Verbatim Quotes
- “I have to get a second job just to like, be caught up with payments and stuff like that,” — Javier Barajas
- “I want the powerful men to be more, more human. You know, to be more, to have more heart,” — Javier Barajas
- “We’re making hundreds and hundreds of billions, trillions of dollars, but my people said, ‘Please don’t mention that, sir,’ because people are paying a little higher,” — Owner Who Welcomed Trump
- “The President has always been clear about temporary disruptions as a result of the Iran conflict, but this administration will continue to deliver economic wins for the American people over the next two years,” — Matthew Middleton, white house spokesperson