Who are you going to believe: me or your own eyes? That's essentially what Donald Trump is demanding, according to many pundits, after he claimed grocery prices are down, and that gas is $1.98 a gallon, which are both factually untrue.
Trump said on Wednesday that some states saw gas prices fall to just $1.98. In reality, the national average gas price on Wednesday was about $3.17 per gallon, with no state having an average close to $1.98.
GasBuddy found zero stations selling gas for under $2 on Wednesday, with the lowest price at $2.19 per gallon in Texas.
When confronted by it, the White House did not try to substantiate Trump's claim, instead doubling down with another false claim about gas prices being at record lows in "Middle America."
He made the same type of errorenous claim about the price of eggs and other groceries on Truth Social, writing "Oil prices are down, groceries (even eggs!) are down, and the USA is getting RICH ON TARIFFS.” He added that the US is taking in hefty tariff revenue “with the cost of almost all products going down, including gasoline, groceries, and just about everything else.”
In reality, the Consumer Price Index shows average grocery prices were about 2.41% higher in March 2025 than they were in March 2024. As CNN noted, "this was the highest year-over-year grocery inflation rate since August 2023."
"After promising to lower prices on day one of returning to office, President Trump is instead imposing a sweeping set of tax increases that will cost households about $3,800 a year while driving the country towards a recession," Michael Negron, former special assistant to the president for economic policy, said in a statement shared with Newsweek.
Yahoo News fact-checked the current holder of the Oval Office, writing: "Those 10% tariffs are certain to increase grocery prices, though it’s not clear by how much. Prices would likely rise further if Trump re-imposed the higher tariffs he put on pause for 90 days hours after they briefly went into effect in early April."