President Donald Trump gave himself a perfect grade on the economy, telling Politico in a sit-down interview on Monday that the economy is currently an “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus.”
Of course, the economy is not an A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus for most Americans, who face a weakened labor market and higher costs for everyday items due largely to Trump’s tariffs.
But Trump was singing a different tune, spewing lies in an interview with Politico’s Dasha Burns about inflation and affordability.
“What you have to understand, the word affordability … I inherited a mess. I inherited a total mess. Prices were at an all-time high when I came in. Prices are coming down substantially,” Trump said—a total lie as prices were not at an all-time high when he took office, and prices in general are not coming down now.
Trump went on to lie that energy prices are coming down, despite that they are increasing for millions of Americans.
“Look at energy. You and I discussed before the interview, energy … energy has come down incredibly. When energy comes down, everything … ’cause it’s so much bigger than any other subject. But energy has come down incredibly,” Trump told Burns.
Trump also claimed that gas prices are down to “$1.99” in “three states.” In reality, no state has an average price of that amount, according to data from AAA. And while gas prices are decreasing, they’re close to what they were a year ago, before Trump took office.
Ultimately, while Trump lies about the state of the economy, Americans are not buying it.
Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index fell 7 percentage points in November, down to -30 points.
A YouGov/Economist poll released Tuesday found that just 23% of Americans view the economy as either “excellent” or “good.” Meanwhile, the majority either thinks gas prices have gone up a lot (16%), gone up a little (31%), or haven’t changed (19%)—which is to say, they’re not buying what Trump’s selling.
At the end of the day, Trump can’t piss on Americans and tell them it’s raining. People know what they are spending and what their finances are, with millions of Americans now resorting to using “buy now, pay later” loans to afford necessities like groceries.
“Trump just rated his economy an ‘A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus’ as families in Denver struggle to afford groceries plus health care plus child care plus rent,” Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado wrote in a post on X. “Donald Trump is out-of-touch and gaslighting the American people.”
