Didn’t get facts right

In a recent letter to the editor, Mr. Tim Irby touts the fact that stocks, and thus people’s retirement accounts, have done very well during President Trump’s time in office. The stock market indeed has done very well. The Dow is up 51% since Trump’s inauguration, and similarly the S&P 500 is up 61%. Mr. Irby states, “Anyone who participates in one of these retirement programs has seen his or her value increase during the Trump era, far beyond previous years.”

Oh really? Perhaps Mr. Irby should actually do a little research before stating that the market has performed so much better under Mr. Trump. For example, at the end of President

Obama’s first term, the Dow was up 71% and the S&P 500 was up 84%. Similarly, at the end of President Clinton’s first term, the Dow was up 111% and S&P 500 was up 79%. So, despite Mr. Irby’s claim of “far beyond previous years,” the performance of the stock market under Mr. Trump trails the first-term performances under the last two Democratic presidents.

Mr. Irby seems to follow in the footsteps of so many Trump supporters and Mr. Trump himself — just say whatever you want, regardless of the facts. Mr. Irby finishes his letter by suggesting that Arkansas teachers should send Mr. Trump a thank-you note for increasing the value of the assets in their retirement system. Perhaps Arkansas teachers should suggest to Mr. Irby that he compose another letter to the editor apologizing for not getting his facts straight. Alas, that will never happen, because we all know Trump and his supporters never admit to making a mistake. THOMAS MAY North Little Rock