Inaugural Claims Under the Microscope: 5 Key Claims from Trump’s Speech

On January 20, 2025, in Washington, DC, Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term as President of the United States following his victory in the November 2024 election.

His inaugural address took place indoors at the US Capitol’s Rotunda just after noon, followed by a speech in Emancipation Hall, located in the Capitol’s visitor center. Later, he spoke again at a rally at the Capital One Arena.

We have reviewed several claims made throughout these speeches.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Has the US seen ‘record inflation’?

In his inaugural address, President Trump stated that he would “direct” his cabinet to “defeat what was record inflation and rapidly bring down costs and prices.”

While the US, like many other nations, has experienced rising inflation in recent years, it has not reached an all-time high. US inflation was 2.9% in the 12 months ending in December 2024. The peak was 9.1% in June 2022, marking the highest inflation in decades, though it was lower than rates observed in previous periods. For instance, inflation exceeded 9.1% during the early 1980s and mid-1970s.

In June 1920, inflation reached 23.7%, a record high since at least 1914, though it’s unclear if similar data exists from the very founding of the US.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did former President Biden pardon ‘almost everybody’ with a death sentence?

In his speech at the Capitol’s Emancipation Hall, President Trump claimed that former President Joe Biden “pardoned almost everybody having a death sentence.”

This statement is inaccurate. While President Biden did commute the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates, this action is not the same as granting a pardon. Instead of facing execution, these inmates will now serve life sentences without the possibility of parole.

It’s also important to note that while Biden commuted the sentences of most federal death row inmates, this represents only a small fraction of the overall number of individuals in the US facing death sentences, as the majority are held on state death rows.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How many people died building the Panama Canal?

During his inaugural address, President Trump claimed that the United States “lost 38,000 lives” during the construction of the Panama Canal, a figure similar to one he quoted in 2023, which was 35,000 deaths.

It’s unclear what led President Trump to the 38,000 figure, but available estimates suggest this number is too high when specifically considering American deaths.

Construction of the canal began in 1904 and was completed 10 years later. Over 40,000 laborers worked on the project, and one estimate puts the death toll at around 5,600. The Panama Canal website states, “According to hospital records, 5,609 lives were lost from disease and accidents during the American construction era.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before US involvement, the French attempted to build the canal in the 1880s, with many more workers losing their lives during that period. Different estimates suggest that around 20,000 or 22,000 workers died, most from disease, and many of them were Jamaican.

In 2023, Matthew Parker, author of Hell’s Gorge: The Battle to Build the Panama Canal, told the BBC that as many as 12,000 people died in the 1850s during the construction of the Panama Railway, but only about 200 of those were Americans. Parker also noted that almost none of the deaths during the French construction period were Americans, and that only around 300 Americans died during the final phase of canal construction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Does China operate the Panama Canal?

In his inaugural address, President Trump claimed that “China is operating the Panama Canal.” The exact meaning of this statement is unclear, but it may require additional context.

The Panama Canal was once owned by the United States but was fully handed over to Panama in 1999. It is now managed by the Panama Canal Authority, a government agency of Panama.

However, Hutchison Ports PPC, a division of the Hong Kong-based company CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, operates the Balboa and Cristobal ports at either end of the canal. Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and has increasingly aligned with China in recent years. CK Hutchison is a publicly listed company on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

In December 2024, when then-President-elect Trump threatened to retake control of the canal, Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino clarified that “the canal is not under any direct or indirect control from China, the European community, the United States, or any other power.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did President Trump win the youth vote by 36 points?

At the Capital One Arena rally, President Trump claimed, “we won the youth vote by 36 points.” It’s unclear what data he was referencing or how he was defining the “youth vote,” but available exit poll data does not appear to support this claim.

Analysis of exit polls from the 2024 presidential election indicates that the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris, won the vote among both 18-29 and 30-44-year-olds. While Mr. Trump did improve his performance in these age groups compared to the 2020 and 2016 elections, his improvement was not as high as 36 points.

Trump did outperform Harris among male voters aged 18-29 and white voters in this age group, but there is no exit poll data suggesting he won either of these groups by 36 points.

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