CBS News is fact checking some of the statements made by speakers during the 2024 Republican National Convention, which is taking place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, through Thursday, July 18. Monday’s theme was the economy, so several of the statements checked relate to U.S. economic concerns. Former President Donald Trump made a surprise appearance at the convention Monday night.
CBS News is covering the RNC live.Â
Fact check on Sen. Katie Britt’s statement that Trump had the best economy ever: False
GOP Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama: “Under President Trump, we had the strongest economy in history.”
Details: Britt claimed in her convention speech that Trump presided over the strongest economy in history. The former president also often makes this claim, including at the presidential debate in June.
But the claim is not true if viewed through the prism of many of these common metrics used to judge economic performance:Â
- GDP growth has been higher under Mr. Biden and was also higher at times in the 1990s, 1960s, and 1950 ( World Bank).
- Stock market: Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Dwight Eisenhower also had higher percentage gains in the S&P 500 during their first terms than Trump did (S&P).
- Homeownership increased by 2.1 points under Trump, rising to 65.8%. However, the highest level of homeownership was in 2004, when it hit 69.1%. (U.S. Census Bureau quarterly seasonally adjusted rates (table 14a))
- The national deficit was the largest it had been in over two decades under the Trump administration, according to data from the U.S. Treasury. The deficit peaked in fiscal year 2020 at $3.13 trillion, and declined to $1.7 trillion by the end of fiscal year 2023.
- Federal debt increased by 50% during Trump’s term, in part due to spending on COVID aid packages, according to data from the Treasury Department. By comparison, federal debt increased by 8% under President Bill Clinton and by 25% under President Joe Biden so far.
However, during Trump’s presidency, wages went up and inflation remained low. Real wage growth under Trump was the best in recent history. (federal data analyzed by Texas A&M University)
But Trump did preside over very low unemployment, February 2020’s rate of 3.5% was the lowest since 1969, but not the lowest ever. (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
By Laura Doan
Fact check on Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s claim that women and minorities saw record low unemployment under Trump: Partially true, needs context
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin: “Women, Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans all saw record low unemployment under President Donald J. Trump.”
Details: Across all of these demographics, the unemployment rate has been comparable during both President Biden and former President Trump’s administrations.Â
Unemployment for women was at a record low in the 1950s. There have been more periods of lower unemployment for women under Mr. Biden than under Trump, and this is true for Black Americans, too. For Hispanic and Latino Americans, unemployment reached a low of 3.9% during both administrations. Asian Americans saw their lowest unemployment rate under Trump, 2% in May 2018.
Here are the unemployment levels for each of these groups, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
By Emily Pandise
Fact check on Youngkin’s claim that Trump’s presidency had high growth and low inflation, and Biden’s presidency has low growth and high inflation: Misleading, needs context
Youngkin: “Under President Trump, America had high growth and low inflation. Under Joe Biden, America has low growth and high inflation.”
Details: It’s true that inflation remained low during Trump’s presidency, with year-over-year inflation peaking at 2.9% in July 2018. Inflation has been much higher under Mr. Biden, with year-over-year inflation peaking at 9.1% in June 2022. But year-over-year inflation under Mr. Biden has since cooled to about 3%.
But there has also been stronger economic growth during Mr. Biden’s presidency: Annual GDP growth is averaging 3.4%, according to figures from the World Bank. If the 2020 pandemic is excluded, growth after inflation under Trump’s average of 2.6% was lower.
By Laura Doan
Fact check on Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s claim that Biden would let Trump’s 2017 tax cuts expire, leading to biggest tax increase in U.S. history: Misleading
GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee: “If Joe and Kamala are reelected they say they’ll let [Trump’s 2017 tax cuts] expire. That will be the biggest tax increase in American history.”Â
Details: The Biden administration has proposed extending Trump-era tax cuts for families earning under $400,000 annually, instead of letting them expire in 2025. White House budget plans show Mr. Biden wants to raise taxes on corporations and high-income earners.Â
By Laura Doan
Fact check on Youngkin’s claim that 2.4 million Americans were lifted out of poverty under Trump: True
Youngkin: “Under President Trump 2.4 million Americans were lifted out of poverty.”
Details: Youngkin’s number may have been a little low. According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, there were 40.6 million living in poverty in 2016 and 37.9 million in 2021. That’s a difference of 2.7 million people living in poverty by the end of Trump’s term, rather than 2.4 million.
By Joseph Enoch
Blackburn’s claim that Biden hired 85,000 IRS agents to harass working Americans: False
Blackburn: “Joe and Kamala couldn’t help themselves. They hired 85,000 new IRS agents to harass hard-working Americans.”Â
Details: The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 provided a 10-year, $80 billion investment in the IRS. A 2021 Treasury report showed that the IRS could add nearly 87,000 full-time employees over the following 10 years. The figure doesn’t specify how many of those hires would be employed as auditors, versus other roles. It’s a potential number, not a net number. Over a decade, the agency will see people retire or leave. President Biden has touted the increased funding as a way to help the IRS go after tax cheats, not “hard-working Americans.”
By Alexander HunterÂ
