German media: Trump's national speech: Bragging about achievements, fierce criticism of Biden

On the eve of his first year in office, U.S. President Trump delivered a 20-minute televised national address. In the speech, he painted an extremely optimistic picture of the current economic situation in the United States, claiming that the U.S. has become the most popular country in the world, while blaming all difficulties such as inflation and border issues on the previous Biden administration. However, recent polls show that due to high living costs, public satisfaction with him is continuously declining.

U.S. President Trump gave a television address to the nation on Wednesday evening local time. Within less than 20 minutes, this Republican leader emphasized his "achievements" during his first year in office and launched a fierce attack on the previous Biden administration.

In his speech, Trump expressed high optimism about the current state of the U.S. economy. He claimed that the U.S. was in a "death" state a year ago, but now it is the "most fashionable and vibrant" country in the world. He stated that before his inauguration, there were "millions of criminal foreigners" in the U.S., a society influenced by "wokeness," and uncontrollable inflation; now, the U.S. is on the verge of an unprecedented economic boom.

However, official statistics deviate from the president's optimistic rhetoric. Although Trump claims that $1.8 trillion in investments have been secured for the U.S., the actual figures are far lower. The claim that drug prices have dropped by 600% has also been criticized as mathematically impossible.

Declining Polls: Economic Anxiety Overwhelms Voters

Despite the president's depiction of a prosperous scene, polls show a different story. Affected by persistent inflation and high living costs, public satisfaction is declining.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday showed that Trump's approval rating had dropped from 41% to 39%. Only one-third (33%) of Americans approve of how he handles the economy. Additionally, a CBS survey in November found that 65% of respondents believe Trump's policies are driving up food prices. This dissatisfaction has raised concerns among Republicans ahead of the upcoming midterm elections next year.

Ignoring Foreign Policy: Silence on Ukraine and Venezuela

Notably, Trump said almost nothing about foreign policy in his speech.

Although Berlin recently held a Ukrainian ceasefire negotiation with U.S. participation, and the EU summit in Brussels on Thursday will further discuss the situation in Ukraine, Trump remained silent on the issue of Ukraine. He also did not mention the recent U.S. interception of drug-carrying ships in the Caribbean Sea. Just on Tuesday, Trump had announced a maritime blockade of Venezuela, prohibiting sanctioned oil tankers from entering or leaving.

Christmas Gift: "Warrior Dividend" Distribution

To secure the support of military personnel, Trump announced a Christmas bonus called the "warrior dividend" for approximately 1.5 million active-duty service members across the country.

Each service member will receive a check worth $1,776, a number specifically paying homage to the year the Declaration of Independence was signed—1776. Trump stated that this expenditure of about $2.6 billion will be funded by tariff revenues collected from various countries since the beginning of the year. Previous surveys showed that about 61% of veterans or reserve personnel support Trump.

Controversial Data: Illegal Immigration and Energy Prices

On the issue of immigration, Trump once again used controversial data. He claimed that Biden's administration allowed "a military of 25 million people" to invade the U.S., but fact-checking shows that the estimated number of illegal border crossings under Biden's administration is around 7.4 million to 10 million.

About energy prices, Trump claimed that the average price of gasoline nationwide has dropped to $2.50 per gallon, but the Energy Information Administration (EIA) monitoring data on December 15 showed it at $2.90 per gallon. He also claimed that household energy costs have decreased by $3,000, but provided no evidence to support this claim.

At the same time the speech was released, Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) appointed by Trump, announced he would resign in January next year. This official, who was previously a right-wing podcast host, has only served for less than 10 months, and his lack of professional experience has sparked widespread controversy.

Source: DW

Original: toutiao.com/article/1851865327574345/

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