It’s hardly a secret that public concerns about inflation, affordability and the cost of living are a major concern for much of the country, so it’s important for Donald Trump to at least try to understand the issue at a basic level. So far, the president hasn’t even cleared a low bar.
During his latest appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” host Joe Kernen, widely recognized as a conservative voice, noted that the inflation rate “was down to about where it is now, about 3%,” by the time Joe Biden’s term came to an end. Before the host could even get to his question, Trump interrupted.
“No, it wasn’t,” the president insisted. “It was down to 5%.”
Trump went on to argue, “And the reason it was down was because I had won the election, and it started falling after I won the election, and I started getting prices down from right after Nov. 5.”
Fortunately, none of this is subjective. We’re talking about knowable and specific details. It’s very easy to check and see whether the president was right or whether he was clueless.
Take a wild guess where I’m going with this.
As the global economy started recovering in earnest in the wake of the pandemic, inflation roared in every advanced economy on the planet. Unfortunately, the United States was no exception, and in June 2022, the inflation rate reached 9%. Conditions gradually improved in the months and years that followed, and by November 2024, the consumer price index had slid from 9% to 2.7%.
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When Trump said the inflation rate “started falling after I won the election,” he was wrong: The monthly rate actually went up a little in the final two months of 2024, not down, as the Republican prepared to return to the White House.
By January 2025, as Biden’s presidency ended, the CPI stood at 3% (slightly better than the 3.2% from last month). Trump said it was 5%, but reality proves otherwise.
The basic factual information that Kernen referenced was accurate, and when the president tried to contradict the host, Trump peddled demonstrably untrue claims.
To be sure, “Trump lies about a thing” is a daily occurrence, but I emphasize this because of the larger context: The latest Associated Press poll found the president’s approval rating sinking to a woeful 33%, but when respondents were asked about affordability, only 23% — less than 1 in 4 Americans — approved of the Republican’s efforts to address the cost of living.
Maybe if Trump understood the rudimentary basics about the economic data and recent events, he wouldn’t be failing so spectacularly?
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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