More than 200 times Trump promised Mexico would pay for the wall. Now he falsely says he’s keeping his promise with the revised trade agreement with Mexico. (Meg Kelly/The Washington Post)
“I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I’ll build them very inexpensively, I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall.”
— Donald Trump, in his presidential announcement speech, June 16, 2015
“What we save on the USMCA — the new trade deal we have with Mexico and Canada — what we save on that, just with Mexico, will pay for the wall many times over just in a period of a year, two years and three years. … So I view that as, absolutely, Mexico is paying for the wall.”
— Trump, remarks during a news conference, Jan. 4, 2019
Just about every president has made a campaign promise that, once elected, he discovers he cannot fulfill.
George H.W. Bush once proclaimed, “Read my lips: No new taxes.” Barack Obama pledged that he would reduce the annual cost of health-care premiums by $2,500.
Taxes went up under Bush, and so did premiums under Obama. Voters never forgot it.