President Donald Trump delivered a prime-time address Wednesday night that was heavy on big numbers and bold declarations. But not everyone was buying what he was selling. Fox News host Jessica Tarlov came out swinging the next day, calling the speech "a lie filled mess" and warning viewers that the economic picture Trump painted was more fiction than fact.
Cherry-Picked Inflation Numbers
Tarlov's main gripe? The inflation data Trump highlighted conveniently left out some pretty important stuff. "The inflation story being sold by Trump doesn't match real life," she wrote on X Thursday morning. "The new number leaves out food, rent, and health care and only counts cheaper gas."
During her appearance on Fox News' "The Five," she elaborated: "So no data from October, November on food, shelter and health care. But the gas number was in there because the gas prices are falling. So just take it with a grain of salt."
In his address, Trump declared "I inherited a mess and I am fixing it," blaming former President Joe Biden for what he described as the worst inflation in 48 years. But Tarlov pushed back on that narrative, noting that Biden actually left office with inflation at 2.9%, not the 9% figure Trump seemed to suggest. "I hope that inflation goes down. We will all be happier," she said. "We'll be able to buy more."
The $18 Trillion Question
Trump also bragged about securing $18 trillion in investments under his leadership. That's a massive number—the kind that makes headlines. But Tarlov wasn't convinced. She cited information from AI chatbot Grok and the White House itself, which puts the actual total somewhere between $8.8 trillion and $9.6 trillion. And even that includes a lot of investments that were already in the works or AI projects that would have happened regardless of who was sitting in the Oval Office.
The "Warrior Dividend" Controversy
One of the flashier announcements from Trump's speech was the "warrior dividend"—a $1,776 check supposedly heading to over 1 million military service members. Trump framed it as being funded through tariffs, painting it as new money for the troops. Tarlov saw it differently.
"He's taking already allocated funds that were supposed to go towards housing subsidies for our troops and branding them with his 1776 Trump sticker," she said. "So you get a bonus, but you lose a benefit. It's not coming from the tariff pot—it's already been allocated. That is dishonest and that is very uncool."
All Sizzle, No Steak?
Tarlov wrapped up her assessment by suggesting the whole thing was more performance than policy. "I expected something really novel last night that he was gonna have a big rollout like the Trump accounts and we didn't get that at all."
It's rare to see this kind of direct pushback from a Fox News personality on Trump's economic messaging. Whether it signals a broader shift in how his claims are scrutinized remains to be seen. But for now, at least one voice on the network is asking viewers to look past the headlines and check the fine print.