Trump’s Shaky $5,000 Boast
President Donald Trump is on shaky ground when he claims that annual income for the typical household is up by an inflation-adjusted $5,000 since he took office. That turns out to be based on an erratic series of estimates drawn from a government survey that isn’t even designed to measure income.
To be sure, incomes have risen substantially since Trump took office. As we reported last month, the Census Bureau’s measure of median household income increased $1,400 (after adjusting for inflation) or 2.3% during Trump’s first two years in office. All indications since December, and the . But a $5,000 gain would be more than triple what the official figures show from Trump’s first two years, and it’s unlikely the total gain has suddenly surged to the level Trump claims.
