President Trump's proposal to cap credit card interest rates at 10% for one year is drawing fire from an unexpected direction: economist Peter Schiff, who's calling the move both unconstitutional and hypocritical.

The Irony Isn't Lost on Anyone

In a post on X Sunday, Schiff didn't mince words. He labeled Trump's interest rate cap as "socialist price control," which would be unremarkable criticism except for one detail: Trump spent considerable time on the campaign trail last year hammering Kamala Harris for proposing price controls on groceries. Now he's proposing essentially the same thing, just for credit cards instead of eggs.

Schiff warned the policy could backfire spectacularly. "This will force lenders to cut credit limits and close accounts for higher-risk borrowers," he said, predicting the cap would disrupt consumer lending markets rather than help everyday Americans.

Trump wants credit card companies to implement the cap by January 20, 2026, exactly one year into his second term. The proposal fits into a broader pattern of populist economic announcements from the administration this past week, including a ban on institutional buyers purchasing single-family homes and a $200 billion initiative targeting lower mortgage rates.

Strange Bedfellows in Opposition

Bill Ackman, the billionaire hedge fund manager and Trump ally, called the proposal a "mistake." His concern? Credit card companies would simply cancel millions of accounts if they can't earn adequate returns, potentially pushing desperate borrowers toward loan sharks instead of helping them.

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) slammed the proposal from a different angle entirely. "Begging credit card companies to play nice is a joke," she posted on X. "Trump doesn't care about affordability. Americans know a fraud when they see one." Warren also pointed out the contradiction of proposing consumer protections while simultaneously working to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which protects borrowers from predatory lending.

As for the market reaction? The iShares U.S. Financial Services ETF (IYG), which tracks major U.S. credit card and financial services companies, barely blinked at the news. The fund closed Friday down just 0.21% at $94.32.