President Donald Trump has said he is “very proud” of the U.S. economy, despite a new study finding that 90 percent of American citizens believe the country is currently suffering a cost of living crisis.
Trump, who has previously blamed his predecessor Joe Biden for the “bad parts” of the economy, appeared to finally take ownership in an interview with NBC News that aired during Super Bowl LX Sunday.
“At what point are we in the Trump economy?” journalist Tom Llamas asked the president.
“I’d say we’re there now,” he replied. “I’m very proud of it.”
Trump went on to claim that opposition Democrats have been forced to abandon their winning “affordability” rhetoric given the success of his administration and claim boldly that the coming year is “even gonna be better” thanks to his controversial reciprocal tariffs policy.
“You know, we have hundreds of billions of dollars pouring into our country. Actually trillions – $18 trillion is being invested in our country as we speak,” he told Llamas.
“And there are factories and plants and thousands of businesses being built all over the country.”
But, on Friday, a nationwide survey from Talker Research for Current.com found that nine U.S. citizens in 10 believed the country was caught up in an inflation crisis, with eight in 10 saying they felt the cost of consumer goods had actually become more expensive since Trump took office in January 2025, not less.
The same study revealed that 52 percent of respondents were failing to pay their monthly bills on time and as many again struggling to afford basic necessities.
Another 38 percent said they had been forced to move because they could no longer afford to live in their previous location, while 64 percent said they had given up on the possibility of ever being able to live in their dream location because of the financial constraints they face.
The president’s confidence in his economic record was also called into question by another survey last week from NPR/Marist/PBS News, which found that 59 percent of U.S. adults disapproved of his stewardship, compared to just 36 percent in favor.
Trump also cited data in his NBC interview that was not supported by his administration’s own figures, claiming that the U.S.’s GDP had grown by 5.6 percent on his watch, whereas the Department of Labor records the economy’s annualized growth rate at 4.4 percent for the third quarter of 2025.
The department has not released fourth quarter data as a result of last fall’s government shutdown impeding its record-keeping.
A White House official told NBC Trump was alluding to a projection put out by the Atlanta Federal Reserve, which was still only 5.4 percent and higher than most other estimates.
The U.S. economy has not experienced quarterly growth of more than 5 percent at any point since 2021, when the country was rebounding from the impact of Covid-19 lockdowns.
Pressed by Llamas on whether the factory openings he promised would happen before Trump leaves office in January 2029, the president answered: “Oh, yeah. They’ll be opening up over the next year, year and a half, yeah.”
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