Tim Scott’s False and Misleading Claims About Unemployment

Republican Sen. Tim Scott has claimed that African Americans, Hispanics and Asians all had their lowest unemployment rate under former President Donald Trump. But the lowest unemployment rate on record for African Americans was under President Joe Biden, and the lowest unemployment rate for Hispanics was the same under both presidents.

Women also had their lowest unemployment rate since the 1950s under Biden, despite what Scott suggested on May 5, when he was interviewed by host Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Scott speaking at the Judge Joseph Story Dinner in Cambridge, Iowa, in August 2023. Photo by Gage Skidmore.

“We were just better off under President Trump,” began Scott, who is considered to be a potential vice presidential running mate for Trump. “Inflation, Kristen, was at 2%, and we had the lowest unemployment rates for African Americans, for Hispanics, for Asians, a 70-year low for women.”