Trump Hoped Economy Would Crash Under Biden in Resurfaced Clip as Markets Continue to Plummet

A clip of President Donald Trump expressing hope that the economy would crash before his second term could begin has resurfaced as global markets suffer their worst downturn in years following the White House's sweeping new tariffs.

"When there's a crash, I hope it's going to be during this next 12 months because I don't want to be Herbert Hoover," Trump said in a January 2024 interview. President Herbert Hoover presided over the 1929 stock market crash and the onset of the Great Depression.

Now, less than three months into his second term, Trump's tariff war with China and other nations has sent world markets into freefall. The Hang Seng plunged 13%, its sharpest drop since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, while Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 7.8%. Major European indices also tumbled, with Frankfurt's DAX sinking 10% and US oil prices plunging below $60 a barrel.

"The market's telling you in plain language: global demand is vanishing, and a global recession is on the cards and coming on fast," warned Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.

Despite rising alarm, Trump has stood firm, describing the pain as necessary to rebalance global trade and reduce deficits. "Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something," he told reporters.

With consumer prices set to rise and investor confidence shaken, analysts warn that the administration's strategy could backfire domestically—both economically and politically.

Still, Trump's inner circle remains bullish. Peter Navarro, a key architect of the tariffs, assured investors that "you can't lose money unless you sell," and promised the "biggest boom in the stock market we've ever seen."

Whether that boom materializes remains to be seen. For now, the crash Trump once hoped for under Biden has been ushered in on his own watch.