Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said President Donald Trump can “lie all that he wants” after Trump gave himself an “A+++++” on his performance regarding the economy.
“If this is an A+++ economy, God help us if we ever get to a B or a C,” Sanders said on CNN. “And he talks about how he is lowering prices, well, right now, people all over this country are getting insurance notices.”
Trump told Politico on Thursday that he would give himself an “A+++++” when asked to grade himself on the economy.
“But what you have to understand about affordability is that I inherited a mess. A total mess,” Trump said. “Prices were at an all-time high when I came in. Prices are coming down substantially.”
The interview was released ahead of Trump’s speech in Pennsylvania, during which he aimed to reassure voters that his economic agenda would lower prices and ease affordability concerns.
Three-quarters of Americans view the economy negatively, with 76% of people polled saying the economy is “not so good” or “poor,” according to a Fox News report conducted in November.
Trump’s speech followed his repeated dismissal of affordability concerns, pushing that it’s a “hoax” orchestrated by Democrats.
Sanders said Trump’s promoting these “stupid” claims will backfire on him.
“Trump lies all the time, and sometimes he can get away with lies when people are not familiar with an issue, but to talk about how prices are going down when your healthcare costs are soaring,” Sanders said. “People say, you know what, this guy is either lying or he’s way out of touch with reality.”
Sanders argued that there is an affordability crisis and that the economy might be an “A+” for the wealthy elite.
“I think the problem for Trump is that he hangs out with his billionaire friends all the time,” Sanders said. “And I got to admit, for his billionaire friends, he is in fact an A+ president.”
“They have never done as well as they have right now,” he added. “They are getting richer and richer while tens of millions of Americans struggle to put food on their table.”
Sanders said Trump can “lie all that he wants,” but Americans feel the opposite.
“When people walk into a grocery store, they see the outrageous prices that they are now paying, when housing costs all across this country are going up, when kids can’t afford to go to college, when 60% of our people are living paycheck to paycheck,” Sanders said. “No, we do have an affordability crisis.”
Since Trump took office, there have been some economic improvements, including a decrease in fuel costs, which the president highlighted during his speech on Tuesday night.
The current national average cost of fuel is at its lowest level since May 2021, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Currently, 36 states have an average gas price lower than $3.
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During his speech, Trump continued to blame former President Joe Biden and Democrats for the high costs.
“Democrats are like ‘prices are too high,’” Trump said. “Yeah, they’re too high because they cause them to be too high. But now they’re coming down.”