Overview
- In an 18- to 20-minute speech from the White House Diplomatic Reception Room, the president said he “inherited a mess,” blamed Joe Biden for high prices and urged patience as his policies take effect.
- He said roughly 1.45 million service members will receive a one-time $1,776 payment funded by tariff revenue, declaring the checks are “already on the way.”
- He previewed 2026 priorities by promising “some of the most aggressive” housing reforms in U.S. history but offered no specifics, and suggested a new Federal Reserve chair would help lower mortgage rates.
- He asserted that prices for items like gasoline and Thanksgiving turkeys are falling and claimed inflation has stopped; independent data show national average gas near $2.90, turkey data are mixed, and inflation remains about 3%.
- Recent surveys show weak marks on the economy — Reuters/Ipsos at 33%, NPR/PBS/Marist at 36%, Quinnipiac at 40% approval — with unemployment up to 4.6% and Republicans worried about 2026 midterm risks.