During his State of the Union address on Thursday, President Joe Biden’s economic assertions were subjected to six fact-checks by The New York Times. Biden sought to highlight the purported achievements of “Bidenomics,” yet the Times noted that many of these claims lacked contextual information.
Fact Check 1:
“15 million new jobs in just three years — a record,” Biden claimed.
The Times ruled the claim needed context because the job gains “were beginning to return” before Biden came to office:
That is a growth of about 10 percent in three years. However, it is worth noting that Mr. Biden came to office as jobs were beginning to return after huge losses during the coronavirus pandemic. Total jobs are now about 3.5 percent higher than the prepandemic peak in February 2020. About half of the 22 million jobs lost in 2020 had returned by the start of the Biden administration.
Fact Check 2:
“In fact, my policies have attracted $650 billion in private sector investment, in clean energy, advanced manufacturing, creating tens of thousands of jobs here in America!” Biden claimed.
The Times ruled Biden’s statement lacked context. The outlet said Biden calculated $650 billion based on “public announcements of investments — not necessarily dollars spent — across industries targeted by Mr. Biden’s legislative accomplishments.”
Fact Check 3:
“I am cutting our carbon emissions in half by 2030,” Biden claimed.
The Times determined that Biden’s statement lacked context. It said Biden confused his goal of cutting emissions in half with what his actual policies would cut.
Fact Check 4:
“We’ve already cut the federal deficit over a trillion dollars,” Biden claimed.
The Times ruled Biden’s claim needed context:
Under Mr. Biden’s watch, the federal deficit dropped to $1.4 trillion in fiscal year 2022 from $3.1 trillion in fiscal year 2021 — but much of that reduction was attributed to the expiration of coronavirus relief spending. The deficit then rose in 2023, to about $1.7 trillion.
…
The deficit remains higher than it was before the coronavirus pandemic. In fiscal year 2019, the deficit was about $984 billion and lower in years prior. And the national debt has grown to about $34.4 trillion today, from about $27.8 trillion in January 2021.
Fact Check 5:
“You know, there are 1,000 billionaires in America. You know what the average federal tax is for these billionaires? They are making great sacrifices: 8.2 percent. That’s far less than the vast majority of Americans’ pay,” Biden claimed.
The Times ruled Biden’s claim as needing context. The outlet said Biden cited a 2021 White House study that referenced a “’more comprehensive measure of income’ than is currently assessed.” The Times reported Biden’s claim did not “technically” reflect the current tax rate.
Fact Check 6:
“Many of my friends on the other side of the aisle want to put Social Security on the chopping block,” Biden claimed.
The Times determined that Biden’s claim needed context. “Republicans are not currently calling for cuts to Social Security,” the Times said.
Former President Donald Trump told Breitbart News in 2022 that he would never cut Social Security.
