Of all the false claims Donald Trump has made over the years, CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale argued Wednesday that one specific current type could ultimately hurt him the most.

Dale wrote on X that his “personal opinion is that Trump’s lying about prices — that they’re way down from when he took office, that almost everything is cheaper now, that they’re falling rapidly right now — is his single most politically damaging category of lie.”

Trump’s false claims “about many subjects require some level of research/prior knowledge/political engagement to debunk,” Dale continued.

But on prices, he argued, what’s happening is clear.

“When he lies about prices, even devoted supporters are passively debunking him with their own eyes every day,” Dale said.

My personal opinion is that Trump's lying about prices - that they're way down from when he took office, that almost everything is cheaper now, that they're falling rapidly right now - is his single most politically damaging category of lie.His lies about many subjects require…

The journalist’s observation, in response to New York Times reporter Sabrina Tavernise’s story examining Americans’ growing distrust and the “pervasive sense they are being lied to,” comes as Trump and Republicans face mounting public dissatisfaction over the cost of living ahead of the 2026 midterms.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released this week put the president’s approval rating at 32%, the lowest of his political career, while just 17% of respondents approved of his handling of the cost of living.

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