Former President Donald Trump’s recent remarks praising President William McKinley’s economic policies in the 1890s have sparked criticism on social media.
During a town hall event at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan, on Friday, Trump praised the heavy-handed economic approach of the late 19th century, especially under McKinley, a Republican. The visit is part of Trump’s 10th trip to the embattled state, underscoring the importance of the Great Lakes State in his election strategy.
“In the 1890s, our country was probably the richest because it was a tariff system,” said Trump, the GOP presidential candidate. “We had a president, you know McKinley? Remember Mount McKinley? He was a very good businessman, and he made billions of dollars at that time. We were a very rich country at that time.” Mount McKinley, now officially known as Denali, was named after the 25th president.
Trump’s comments are part of a broader discussion about manufacturing and job creation in the United States. The former president, a longtime advocate for protectionist trade policies, said implementing tariffs would help bring manufacturing jobs back to America and boost the economy.
“We need a smart series of tariffs and taxes,” Trump told the audience, many of whom were auto workers concerned about job security amid industry changes and economic pressures.
However, Trump’s praise for 19th-century economic policies quickly drew attention from various corners of the internet, including historians and economists who challenged McKinley’s economic characterization.
Former Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Steele took to X, formerly Twitter, to express his dismay at Trump’s comments and wrote: “I’m sitting here at the airport watching clips from Trump’s rally. And I’m wondering why we continue to subject him to ignorant mind?”
Steele, a Trump critic, also questioned why Americans “continually shift to Trump’s retrogressive view of America and its citizens” and “make excuses about and for lies and lies.”
Newsweek Trump’s spokeswoman and Steele’s office were contacted by email Monday for comment.
Getty Images/Emily Elconin
While tariffs may provide short-term protection for certain industries, they may also increase costs for consumers and potential retaliation from trading partners. The Peterson Institute for International Economics estimates that a 20 percent tariff could raise annual costs for the average American family by $2,600 due to higher prices.
TJ Stiles, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian, refuted Trump’s claims about X, writing on Friday, “Trump is no better a historian of the 1890s than he was of the Civil War. No, it was not America’s richest period. . No, McKinley was not a businessman.”
Stiles stated that McKinley’s first major tariff bill, written while in Congress, “partly cost the Republican House & White House.” The historian refers to the McKinley Tariff Act of 1890, which raised duties on imported goods by about 50 percent and caused significant political losses for the Republican Party in subsequent elections.
Contrary to Trump’s depiction of the 1890s as an era of unprecedented wealth, the United States experienced a severe economic depression from 1893 to 1897. Journalist Paul Farhi noted in X was during this period, “Banks failed; unemployment rate over 10 percent for five years.”
The Depression of 1893 was one of the worst economic downturns in American history. According to the Economic History Association, the unemployment rate exceeded 10 percent for half a decade, a sustained high unemployment rate only seen again during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
An economic contraction began in January 1893 and lasted until June 1894, followed by a brief period of growth. However, the second recession lasted from December 1895 to June 1897. The real gross national product (GNP) fell by about 4 percent from 1892 to 1893 and another 6 percent from 1893 to 1894. Although it recovered in 1895, the economy again fell by about -about 2.5 percent. per cent from 1895 to 1896.
The impact on the average American is significant. Because population growth was about 2 percent per year, real GNP per capita did not exceed its 1892 to 1899 level. until 1898. .
This period was marked by violent strikes, political upheaval, and far-reaching social and intellectual developments, making the Depression of 1893 a watershed event in American history.
