Trump says Americans are already experiencing the 'Trump Economy': 'I'm very proud of it'
The President spoke about how GDP grew under his watch and called out Democrats over affordability.
Feb. 9 2026, Published 6:29 a.m. ET
On paper, the American economy is doing great, growing at a strong annualized rate of 4.4% in the third quarter of 2025. It wasn't long until President Donald Trump took credit for that, but the on-ground reality is a lot different. Low and middle-income families are struggling to make ends meet, and small businesses are struggling to stay afloat. There is also a housing market crisis. But you’d never realize it if you heard the president's recent speeches.
As per a recent report in NBC News, President Trump claimed that gross domestic product has grown by 5.6% on his watch. The truth is that the US GDP has not grown more than 5% since 2021, when the country was recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump was referring to the Atlanta Fed’s projection, which has ranged as high as 5.4%.
While projections may not be the real deal, that did not stop Trump from beating his own drum yet again. “I’m very proud of it,” he said, taking a tad bit of unwarranted credit when asked about the economy. With that, the question of affordability arises, which cannot really be swept under the rug, as there are millions on the streets who are unsure of securing even their groceries next month.
As far as that is concerned, the President resorted to his usual trick from his political playbook and blamed the Democrats. “In the last four days, it’s only four days, the Democrats have not uttered the word ‘affordability.’ They’re the ones who caused the problem. I took over a mess in every way,” he said. These comments come after a poll that said 59% of adults disapproved of his handling of the economy so far.
During the first quarter of 2025, as per the report, is the contraction of American economic output thanks to the President’s tariff measures. However, Trump remains adamant that he has trillions of dollars in investments coming into the country in 2026. “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. And there are factories and plants and thousands of businesses being built all over the country,” he claimed.
While it is true that Trump has secured investments in the country, or at least soft checks of investments, the White House website provides a figure of $9.6 trillion. What he claimed was almost double the amount. He also believes that these foreign companies’ factories will open during his term. “They’ll be opening up over the next year, year and a half, yeah,” he claimed.
More on Market Realist