Overview
- On Meet the Press, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said “inflation hasn’t gone up” after host Kristen Welker cited CPI readings rising from about 2.3% in April to roughly 3% by September.
- He argued inflation on imported goods is flat and that services are driving higher prices, even as the administration recently rolled back tariffs on more than 200 food products.
- Pressed on staples like bananas and coffee showing year-over-year increases of about 7% and nearly 19% respectively, Bessent replied with the “How much does your arm weigh?” metaphor to emphasize inflation as a composite index.
- He told viewers the best way to lower one’s personal inflation rate is to move from a blue state to a red state, claiming a half‑percentage‑point gap based on a Council of Economic Advisers study.
- Commentators and fact-checkers quickly challenged his denial of rising inflation and the red–blue claim, while Bessent predicted some prices would fall within weeks or months and touted the lowest Thanksgiving dinner cost in four years with turkey down 16%.