CNN fact checks Biden's claim that he decreased federal deficit

A fact checker with CNN recently pushed back on claims made by President Biden last month in which he said that "I reduced the federal deficit."

"Let me remind you again: I reduced the federal deficit," Biden said in a speech last month talking about economic growth and the deficit. "All the talk about the deficit from my Republican friends, I love it. I've reduced it $350 billion in my first year in office. And we're on track to reduce it, by the end of September, by another 1 trillion, 500 billion dollars -- the largest drop ever."

CNN noted in an article that while the deficit did in fact go down during the 2021 fiscal year, this decline was far less than expected, and noted that economic experts say Biden is "distorting reality when he claims that he is personally responsible for the deficit going down."

While the deficit has been smaller under the Biden administration than it was under the previous Trump administration, this deficit has been larger than if the Biden administration continued with laws put in place when Trump left office.