Trump says he's turned around American industry. Here are the facts
President Donald Trump prefers sweeping superlatives when he talks about his record on the economy.
The Republican tax law has "the biggest tax cuts and reform in American history" (they're not). The new trade agreement with Mexico and Canada is "the most important trade deal we've ever made by far" (the changes are more modest). And the unemployment rate has fallen "to the lowest level in more than 50 years" (it's 49 and the continuation of a nine-year trend).
Then there's Trump's most grandiose claim: His administration has produced "the greatest economy in the history of our country" (it hasn't; the combination of fast growth and low unemployment was better in at least three other periods since World War II).
But Trump sometimes gets more specific. In recent months, he's boasted about five industries: steel, agriculture, autos, energy and manufacturing. With the congressional midterm elections Tuesday and many Republicans running on Trump's record, here are his claims and the facts about them:
–– Steel.
The claims: "I came into office, steel was a dead business," Trump said at an Oct. 12 rally in Lebanon, Ohio. "Now they're opening up plants, U.S. Steel, Nucor. They're opening up plants all over the country, big ones, new ones."
Specifically, he
