Trump points to stock market gains: ‘How are your 409K’s doing?’
President Trump pointed to gains in the stock market on Thursday as evidence of a strong economy under his presidency, imploring Americans to check how their “409K’s” were doing in an apparent typo in a since-deleted tweeted referencing 401(k) retirement funds.
In a tweet Thursday morning, the president pointed to the Dow approaching another all-time high, tweeting: “STOCK MARKET AT ALL-TIME HIGH! HOW ARE YOUR 409K’S DOING? 70%, 80%, 90% up? Only 50% up! What are you doing wrong?”
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The erroneous reference to “409ks” — which appeared to be a typo — quickly drew fire on social media, with critics of Trump mocking the president for his early-morning mixup.
“My 409K sucks. It’s apparently doesn’t even exist,” tweeted GOP strategist and frequent Trump critic Rick Wilson.
My 409K sucks. It’s apparently doesn’t even exist. https://t.co/I0HZtPnnH1
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 9, 2020
“I guess you have to be in the elite to have a 409k,” added Cheddar editor-in-chief Jim Roberts.
I guess you have to be in the elite to have a 409k. https://t.co/6oPmdqL0Rq
— Jim Roberts (@nycjim) January 9, 2020
“409K? The constant typos matter. They underline Trump’s lifelong inability to focus on details,” tweeted MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell.
409K? The constant typos matter. They underline Trump’s lifelong inability to focus on details. https://t.co/Dj4IFLggSh
— Lawrence O’Donnell (@Lawrence) January 9, 2020
Trump later deleted and reissued the tweet, this time without the typo.
STOCK MARKET AT ALL-TIME HIGH! HOW ARE YOUR 401K’S DOING? 70%, 80%, 90% up? Only 50% up! What are you doing wrong?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2020
Under Trump, the stock market, while approaching record-high total numbers, has yet to outpace percentage gains made under previous presidents including Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.
Updated at 11:10 a.m.
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