Trump’s UN Address Riddled with Falsehoods on Economy, Climate and Foreign Policy

President Donald Trump’s address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday contained numerous inaccurate statements across a wide range of topics, from economic indicators to climate policy and international conflicts.

During his speech to world leaders, Trump made bold claims about his administration’s achievements that often contradicted established facts and data, continuing a pattern of misstatements that have characterized his public addresses.

Trump falsely declared that “inflation has been defeated” under his leadership, despite Consumer Price Index figures showing inflation worsening since May after hitting a four-year low in April. The August inflation rate stood at approximately 2.9%, up from 2.7% in July, and nearly identical to the 3% rate when he took office in January.

Similarly, his claim that “grocery prices are down” is contradicted by official data showing average grocery prices approximately 1% higher in August than in January. The month-to-month increase from July to August was about 0.6%, the highest jump since late 2022.

The president also made inaccurate statements about energy costs, claiming “our bills are coming way down.” In reality, U.S. electricity prices have increased 6.2% since last year and are about 4.9% higher than when Trump took office in January, rising more than twice as fast as overall prices.

Trump’s assertion about securing “$17 trillion” in foreign investment commitments lacks verification. Just a day earlier, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt cited a much lower figure of “nearly $9 trillion,” raising questions about the $8 trillion discrepancy that emerged overnight.

On climate issues, Trump referred to climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world” and called global warming a “hoax,” contradicting the scientific consensus. His claim that China builds wind turbines but “barely uses them” is demonstrably false – China leads the world in wind power generation and continues to install additional wind capacity at a rate far exceeding the United States.

Trump also repeated misleading statements about the Paris Climate Accord, falsely claiming the U.S. was “supposed to pay like $1 trillion” under the agreement. In reality, the Biden administration pledged $11.4 billion annually toward international climate financing, with Congress appropriating even less.

Regarding his diplomatic achievements, Trump claimed to have “ended seven wars,” including conflicts between Egypt and Ethiopia, and Serbia and Kosovo. However, these countries were not at war during Trump’s presidency, making it impossible for him to have ended such conflicts. While he did broker agreements between some nations, his role in other cases has been disputed, particularly by India regarding its ceasefire with Pakistan.

The president also made an unfounded claim about his approval ratings, stating, “I have the highest poll numbers I’ve ever had.” Multiple polling aggregators show his approval rating at approximately 41-44%, significantly down from around 51-52% at the beginning of his term in January.

On immigration, Trump continued to exaggerate the number of migrants who entered the country during the Biden administration, claiming “25 million all together over the four years.” Federal records show fewer than 11 million “encounters” with migrants during that period, including millions who were quickly expelled.

His assertion that the Biden administration “lost nearly 300,000 children” misrepresented a Homeland Security report covering a period that included more than two years of his own first administration. The report referenced children who missed court dates or weren’t given notices to appear, not children who disappeared or were confirmed victims of trafficking.

Trump’s address highlights ongoing concerns about accuracy in his public statements, particularly in high-profile international forums where precision and factual integrity are essential to American diplomatic credibility.