President Trump says it’s ‘raining jobs’ but the data shows your paycheck is getting smaller and affordability is at its worst in years

Over the weekend, President Donald Trump celebrated the May employment reports, even as separate government data showed inflation rising and Americans’ wages falling for the first time in three years.

Economists had forecast that the economy would be adding roughly 85,000 jobs in May, but the report by the Labor Department indicates reality has exceeded the expectation by more than double, with some 172,000 positions added to payrolls. The unemployment rate held at 4.3 percent for a third consecutive month.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, wrote in all caps that “IT’S RAINING JOBS,” and criticized economists and political opponents who had questioned his economic policies. “As usual, 100 PERCENT of Bloomberg Economists (who appear to be entering the ‘Terminal’ stages of Trump Derangement Syndrome) underestimated our economy.”

What the post fails to mention, however, is the most recent inflation data, which, according to The Hill, paints a less-than-flattering picture. Consumer prices rose 3.8 percent in April from a year earlier, the highest annual rate since May 2023 and an increase from 3.3 percent in March. Before the late-February military strikes on Iran, the annual rate stood at 2.4 percent.

Experts have attributed much of the increase to higher energy costs following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Energy prices were up 17.9 percent over the year, with gasoline prices up 28.4 percent. General inflation, which excludes food and energy, ran at 2.8 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

What’s more, for the first time in three years, average wage growth did not keep pace with inflation, with average hourly earnings falling 0.5 percent in April, down 0.3 percent over the year. Consumer prices also experienced discernible increases, per CNBC, a record high since May 2023. 

The Trump administration and official figures

The Trump administration has at times disputed the bureau’s data, questioning the accuracy of reports that showed weaker results. 

On August 1, 2025, the bureau reported that the economy had added just 73,000 jobs in July, below forecasts. Hours later, as reported by CNN, Trump fired BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, writing on Truth Social that the numbers were “RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.” 

Then there was the whole episode of Trump nominating E.J. Antoni, a critic of the agency, to lead it (per CBS News) and then withdrawing the nomination after reports came out tying Antoni to degrading posts on social media.

The next inflation report, covering May, will arrive on June 10, with some economists projecting the annual rate could approach or exceed 4 percent.