Trump screams at America that everything is fine

Frequently yelling, President Donald Trump addressed the nation on Wednesday, telling Americans that their experiences of the current economy were wrong, and that actually it was  the “hottest” in the world. However, hours after he spoke, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the costs of groceries remain stubbornly high under Trump’s watch.

In his speech, Trump praised his tariff policy, saying “tariffs” were his “favorite word” because they had purportedly made America “the hottest country anywhere in the world.”

But within hours of the speech’s conclusion, Trump’s message was undermined. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its regular Consumer Price Index report on Thursday morning. The report shows that food prices in November increased 2.6% year over year—higher than in November 2024, when the pace of food inflation was 2.4%.

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The BLS report details that prices for meat, poultry, fish and eggs increased even more, by 4.7% over the past year.

In 2024, Trump campaigned against high food prices under the Biden administration, and claimed he would push policies lowering costs on his first day in office. That has not happened.

In reality, Trump has increased tariffs on goods, and retailers are passing those increased costs on to consumers. Families are able to afford fewer things, and the change in spending habits is working its way through the economy.

And while the BLS report also reveals that core inflation—which excludes food and energy prices—eased slightly in November, many economists are warning that the data is troubled. For example, the report was delayed due to the Republican Party’s government shutdown, and much of the data gathering took place shortly before Black Friday, when prices were artificially lower, rather than across the entire month of November, as typically occurs.

Before the report’s release, former Federal Reserve economist Alan Detmeister said the overall report would be a “very poor reflection of reality.”

And other data agrees with that point. A Bureau of Labor Statistics report on Tuesday showed the unemployment rate is up to 4.6%, the highest it has been since September 2021, when the nation was still facing the COVID-19 pandemic. Heather Long, chief economist at the Navy Federal Credit Union, said the unemployment data revealed that the U.S. was “in a hiring recession”—the opposite of the “hot” state Trump touted in his abrasive speech.

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Trump’s speech also adds to swirling questions about his mental state.

When he wasn’t misconstruing Americans’ economic struggles, Trump used his bigoted anti-immigration actions to claim he was taking action to help American workers, arguing that deporting immigrants would mean “more housing and more jobs.”

In a cynical attempt to shore up his sagging approval ratings, Trump also announced a “warrior dividend” for military members, sending them $1,776 before Christmas, but this was actually a congressionally approved subsidy that was previously appropriated.

Democratic leaders panned Trump’s shouting.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told MS NOW, “It was an unhinged speech that was, of course, untethered from reality and truth. You know, Donald Trump has made things worse for the American people.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, “President Trump’s speech last night showed he lives in a bubble completely disconnected from the reality everyday Americans are seeing and feeling.”

“Behind the absolutely unhinged delivery there is a simple truth: Trump’s corruption is helping his friends and family while things are getting worse for you and yours,” Democratic Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey wrote in a post on social media. “He’s failing you because he doesn’t care about you.”

Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner said the speech was a “sad attempt at distraction,” adding, “Americans know the truth: costs are up, unemployment is up, and he STILL won’t release the Epstein Files.”

Trump’s speech was out of touch with growing concerns about affordability, something Trump has called a “hoax” even as polls show the economy and inflation are their top issues.

Meanwhile, day after day, congressional Republicans are choosing not to run for reelection. It is a sign that Trump’s economy is a political loser—and more yelling isn’t going to help.

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