In a rare moment of candidness, the president acknowledged that the vast majority of Americans don’t quite share his optimistic view of the nation’s economic future.
Donald Trump claims in interview with Wall Street Journal: ‘I created the greatest economy in history’ wall street journal “But it may take a while for people to figure all these things out,” he admitted on Sunday.
“All the money that’s pouring into our country right now is building things — car factories, artificial intelligence, a lot of things,” he continued. “I can’t tell you what this means to voters, all I can do is do my job.”
Trump’s claims of “creating the greatest economy in history” are completely inconsistent with almost every fiscal performance indicator since he took office for the second time in early January.
By the end of December, GDP growth in 2024 is expected to have almost halved, having shrunk from 2.8% to just 1.6% in the past 12 months, as Trump launches a widely criticized tariff war against much of the rest of the world.
Trump tried to convince voters of his economic message at a rally this week, concluding by telling parents to buy fewer Christmas gifts for their children. /Alex Huang/Getty Images
Things are not much better in the labor market, with wage growth plunging to historic lows as the national unemployment rate rises to around 4.3%.
Inflation has remained unchanged. Given the rising costs of essentials such as energy, utilities and groceries, a 3% Consumer Price Index is understood to hit low- and middle-income earners particularly hard.
The latest polls show that nearly half of Americans believe the current affordability crisis is the worst they have ever seen, and a survey in early November showed that as many as 60% disapproved of Trump’s handling of the economy.
Although Trump denies the authenticity of the numbers, he appears to be feeling the pressure as he begins the first of a series of rallies this week to promote his economic message ahead of next year’s crucial midterm elections.
A billionaire himself, in a speech in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, he described the cost of living crisis as a “Democratic scam” and suggested that poorer parents might be prepared to buy fewer toys for their children this Christmas.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for further comment.
