Fact check: New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia set for podium debut
October 13, 2026 · 31 min
Every claim, in order
- TRUEat 23:13
“Real wages are up. 1.2% since president Trump took office, with average annual earnings outpacing in by $800.”
What the data shows: 1.4% — Real Wages (YoY) for Trump II at month 8 of the term (~2025), per FRED.
- FALSEat 23:13· said in 4 broadcasts
“Under Biden, real wages fell nearly 4% with the average private sector workers annual purchasing power declining by nearly $3,000 annually.”
What the data shows: 1.4% — Real Wages (YoY) for Biden at month 47 of the term (~2024), per FRED.
- MISLEADINGat 23:13
“President Trump is the first president in modern history to actually lower prescription drug prices.”
What the data shows: Prescription drug prices fell 3.1% year-over-year as of July 2026 (largest decline since 1963). However, experts attribute much of this to Biden's 2022 Inflation Reduction Act drug negotiation program, not Trump's policies. During Trump's first term (2017-2018), most drugs saw price increases averaging 12% annually.
- MOSTLY TRUEat 24:01· said in 3 broadcasts
“President Trump has created more than 1,000,000 private sector jobs, in his second term”
What the data shows: FactCheck.org reported 902,000 private sector jobs added as of July 2026 using BLS data; White House claims exceeded 1 million by September 2026.
- FALSEat 24:01· said in 2 broadcasts
“nearly a 112,000 factory construction jobs and 72,000 manufacturing jobs this year alone”
What the data shows: BLS data shows manufacturing lost 35,000-82,000 jobs in Trump's first year (2025); construction sector gained ~95,000 total jobs (not factory-specific); factory construction spending declined 10% year-over-year.
- TRUEat 24:01· said in 5 broadcasts
“President Trump secured the biggest oil deal in world history delivering The US majority control of more than 65,000,000,000 barrels of proven oil reserves in Venezuela”
What the data shows: White House announced August 28, 2026 that U.S. secured majority control of 65 billion barrels of proven Venezuelan oil reserves through a joint venture structure giving U.S. 55% control.
- TRUEat 24:48· said in 8 broadcasts
“The US achieved record domestic oil and gas production, in 2025”
What the data shows: EIA Monthly Energy Review confirms US achieved record domestic oil and gas production in 2025: crude oil averaged 13.6 million barrels/day (previous record 13.2 in 2024); dry natural gas reached 39 trillion cubic feet (previous record 103.6 bcf/d in 2023).
- MISLEADINGat 24:48
“record crude and petroleum product exports in 2026”
What the data shows: 2024 annual record: 10.8 million b/d combined crude and petroleum product exports (EIA). April 2026 monthly peak: 13.6 million b/d (EIA). 2026 annual record unconfirmed.
- MISLEADINGat 24:48
“in the first fifteen months of this administration, we have secured trillions of dollars in new investments”
What the data shows: UAE pledged $1.4T over 10 years (March 2025); Apple committed additional $100B for $600B total over 4 years (August 2025); Amazon reported $340B in 2025 spending (includes employee compensation). All are company announcements, not independently audited as 'secured.'
- MISLEADINGat 24:48
“$1,400,000,000,000 from The United Arab Emirates”
What the data shows: UAE committed to a 10-year, $1.4 trillion investment framework announced March 2025; this is a pledge over a decade, not funds already secured or received.
- TRUEat 24:48· said in 2 broadcasts
“$600,000,000,000 from Apple”
What the data shows: Apple announced $600 billion U.S. investment commitment over four years (August 2025), confirmed by Apple press release and SEC filings.
- MISLEADINGat 24:48
“$340,000,000,000 from Amazon”
What the data shows: Amazon invested $340 billion total in the U.S. in 2025 (infrastructure + employee compensation per Amazon's official announcement). New announced commitments during Trump administration: $34 billion ($20B Pennsylvania, $10B North Carolina, $4B small towns).
- MISLEADINGat 25:37
“Masabi will build a massive $15,000,000,000 steel complex in Iowa. The largest steel plant ever built in The United States.”
What the data shows: Mesabi Metallics (not 'Masabi') announced Sept. 28, 2026 a $15B Iowa steel complex described as the largest single investment in a steel complex in U.S. history, creating 1,750 permanent jobs and 6,000 construction jobs, with $95B projected economic output.
- MISLEADINGat 25:37· said in 3 broadcasts
“This new facility will create about 3,100 direct jobs and support more than 11,000 indirect jobs.”
What the data shows: Anduril estimates 3,100 direct jobs; official Maryland announcement states facility will support over 14,000 total jobs (direct and indirect combined), not 11,000 indirect jobs specifically.
- TRUEat 26:26· said in 2 broadcasts
“$120,000,000,000 to build eight large scale nuclear power plants”
What the data shows: South Korea announced $120 billion commitment to build eight nuclear reactors in the US on September 30, 2026, under a non-binding framework (Project Power) comprising $100 billion construction costs plus $20 billion contingency.
- MISLEADINGat 26:26
“$54,000,000,000 tied to the Alaska LNG pipeline and terminal”
What the data shows: Trump announced $54 billion in South Korean investment for Alaska LNG on Sept. 30, 2026, but South Korean officials clarified this is contingent on commercial viability review, not a final commitment.
- TRUEat 26:26
“$22,300,000,000 for a six gigawatt”
What the data shows: South Korea committed $22.3 billion for a 6.47-gigawatt natural gas power plant in Encinal, Texas, announced September 30, 2026. This is the finalized portion of the broader energy investment package.
- TRUEat 28:04
“fentanyl traffic across the southern border is down 56%”
What the data shows: DHS reported fentanyl trafficking at the southern border is down 56% compared to the same period in 2024, as of September 30, 2025.
- FALSEat 28:04
“fentanyl linked deaths plunged twenty two percent in a single year”
What the data shows: CDC data shows fentanyl-involved deaths declined 36.5% from 2023 to 2024 (from 76,282 to 48,422 deaths), not 22%.
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