Trump says he hopes economy crashes in next 12 months: ‘I don’t want to be Herbert Hoover’

Former President Trump said in an interview aired Monday that he predicts the U.S. economy will collapse and hopes it will collapse within the next year.

In an interview with Lou Dobbs, Trump, the current front-runner in the Republican presidential primary, explained that if he were re-elected, he would not want to serve a term like President Hoover, who took office during an economic recession. Although he was stable, he later oversaw the beginning of the Great Depression.

Trump slammed the economy, but acknowledged there were some positive aspects to it and took credit for its success.

“Our economy is very fragile, and the only reason it's standing right now is because we're breathing out the smoke of what we've done,” Trump said. “It's just smoke pouring out.”

President Trump added: “And I hope that happens over the next 12 months because I don't want to be Herbert Hoover when the crash happens.” The only president I don't want to be is Herbert Hoover. ”

However, the U.S. economy defied economists' expectations and ended 2023 with high scores on a wide range of criteria, including falling inflation, high employment growth, and low unemployment.

“I think what we're seeing right now could be described as a soft landing, and my hope is that it continues,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a CNN interview Friday, shortly after releasing surprisingly strong jobs numbers. . For December.

The U.S. added 216,000 jobs in the final month of 2023, keeping the unemployment rate at 3.7%, far higher than economists expected. The annual inflation rate also fell to 3.1% in November from a 40-year high of 9.1% in June 2022, according to the Labor Department.

“This is what the American people did,” Yellen said. “Americans go to work every day, participate in the labor market, and start new businesses. But President Biden is trying to create incentives that give Americans the tools they need to help grow this economy.” .”