Trump admits ‘inflation is back’—but somehow it’s not his fault
In his Tuesday night interview on Fox News, President Donald Trump admitted that inflation has increased in recent weeks, but sought to blame former President Joe Biden.
“Inflation is back,” Trump said. “I’m only here for two and a half weeks. … I had nothing to do with it.”
As of Tuesday, the day the interview was recorded, Trump had been president for 30 days, not the “two and a half weeks” he claimed. He also falsely accused former President Joe Biden’s administration of spending $9 trillion on “the green new scam.”
Trump campaigned in 2024 on a series of Day 1 promises, including the claim that he would take action to lower prices. That hasn’t happened.
If anything, his agenda is more likely to increase prices, not lower them, according to experts. Trump has pursued tariff increases with several of America’s trading partners, justifying his action with the false notion that the costs of those tariffs will be absorbed by the nations in question. In reality, tariff increases are passed on to consumers and increase the costs of goods, adding to inflation.
The Trump administration is also prioritizing deportation of undocumented migrants, which Trump has justified over the years with racist attacks on migrant communities. Data shows that harsh restrictions on immigration are likely to increase inflation.
In his first term in office, Trump mismanaged the response to the COVID-19 pandemic to such an extent that the American economy severely suffered. Biden inherited an economic mess that required legislation like the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act. By the time Biden left office in January, the economy was on stronger economic footing.
Whatever new mistakes Trump makes with the economy, he already has an excuse prepared: Biden.