Trump promises economic boom in address to nation

US President Donald Trump has promised Americans an economic boom in an address to the nation, while blaming Democratic predecessor Joe Biden for high prices that have hit the Republican's popularity.

"Good evening America. Eleven months ago I inherited a mess, and I'm fixing it," the 79-year-old said in a live speech from the White House at the end of his first year back in power.

Mr Trump faces growing voter anger over the issue of affordability despite his efforts to dismiss it as a "hoax" by Democrats, sparking Republican fears they could be punished in the 2026 midterm elections.

The billionaire president insisted that prices of gas and groceries that have worried Americans were "falling rapidly, and it's not done yet. But boy, are we making progress."

In a surprise announcement, Mr Trump said that 1.45 million United States military service members would each receive "warrior dividend" bonus checks for $1,776 (€1,512) before Christmas, paid for with revenues raised from tariffs.

He added that the specific amount was in honour of the year of the founding of the United States, the 250th anniversary of which the country will celebrate next year.

Mr Trump then promised that "we are poised for an economic boom the likes of which the world has never seen" in 2026, when the United States will co-host the FIFA World Cup, with Canada and Mexico.

But while the White House had billed the speech as a chance for Mr Trump to set out his economic agenda for the rest of his second term, much of it consisted of attacks on familiar targets.

He repeatedly raged against Mr Biden, the Democrats, and migrants whom he said "stole American jobs."

Mr Trump's speech comes at the end of a whirlwind year in which he has launched an unprecedented display of presidential power, including a crackdown on migration and the targeting of political opponents.

Poll worries for Trump

But polls show what Americans are most concerned about is high prices, which experts say are partly fuelled by the tariffs he has slapped on trading partners around the world.

The inflation problem also dogged Mr Biden as he tried to heal the US economy after the Covid pandemic, and the Democrat unsuccessfully tried similar arguments with voters about economic good times to come.

Mr Trump got his worst approval ratings ever for his handling of the economy in a PBS News/NPR/Marist poll published yesterday, with 57% of Americans disapproving and expressing concerns about the cost of living.

A YouGov poll published showed that 52% of Americans thought the economy was getting worse under Mr Trump.

He has also faced criticism from his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement for focusing on peace deals in Ukraine and Gaza and on tensions with Venezuela, instead of domestic issues.

It comes as US and Russian officials will meet in Miami this weekend for new talks, a White House official said.

The talks come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed progress during two days of meetings in Berlin between Ukraine and Mr Trump's envoys, while warning that Russia was preparing for a "new year of war."

President Trump also boasted about the Gaza ceasefire, the US attacks on Iran's nuclear programme, and what he calls a war on drug traffickers.

It follows as US forces yesterday carried out a strike on a vessel it said was engaged in alleged drug trafficking in the Pacific Ocean, killing four "narco-terrorists," the US Southern Command announced.

The US military "conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organisation" in the Eastern Pacific which was engaged in "narco-trafficking operations," the Southern Command said on X.

"A total of four male narco-terrorists were killed, and no US military forces were harmed," it added

There are signs Mr Trump's team has had a wake-up call on the economy in recent weeks, with next year's midterm elections for the control of Congress already looming.

Republicans lost heavily in elections in November for the mayor of New York and governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, while Democrats ran them close in a previously safe area in Tennessee.

The president is now ramping up his domestic travel to push his economic message.

Last week in Pennsylvania he promised to "make America affordable again," and tomorrow he is due to give another campaign-style rally in North Carolina.

Vice President JD Vance - who is rapidly becoming Mr Trump's messenger on the issue as he eyes his own presidential run in 2028 - also urged voters to show patience during a speech yesterday.