This is the DNC’s Battleground Brief — a weekly wrap-up of Trump’s broken promises and everything you need to know across the path to 270. 

THE STATE OF TRUMP’S PROMISES: BROKEN. Trump touted more lies and empty promises at Tuesday’s State of the Union address. Here are just a few of his worst broken promises to voters from over the last year:

• Trump claimed “America’s fortunes are on the rise,” but about six-in-ten Americans say the economy is hurting the middle class.

• Trump said he “will always protect your Medicare and we will always protect your Social Security,” yet his latest budget proposal proposal would have cut billions of dollars from these vital programs.

• Trump outrageously said that “I’ve also made an ironclad pledge to American families: We will always protect patients with pre-existing conditions,” even as Republicans wage a cruel campaign to overturn the Affordable Care Act.

• Trump lied that prescription drug prices have fallen during his presidency. In reality, Trump abandoned a key promise to let the government negotiate drug prices after meeting with pharma lobbyists and costs have continued to rise.

• Trump kept lying about his divisive and ineffective border wall. He’s barely built any new wall, and Mexico still isn’t paying for it — you are. 

AFTER THE SPEECH, DEMOCRATS ACROSS THE BATTLEGROUND STATES SLAMMED TRUMP FOR HIS BROKEN PROMISES AND FAILED POLICIES… 

Pennsylvania Democrats: “He promised to protect health care for everyday families, but instead he’s undermining protections for pre-existing conditions like asthma and diabetes. He promised to give the middle-class a tax break, but instead he led a massive giveaway to the largest corporations that keeps them from paying any taxes. And he promised to protect earned benefits like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, but instead has proposed trillions in cuts that would devastate our children and seniors.” 

Wisconsin Democrats: “All we heard was President Trump doubling down on his broken promises. That won’t fly with Wisconsinites. We know he is going to continue trying to take away protections for people with pre-existing conditions while refusing to sign legislation that would lower prescription drug bills. He’ll pretend that our manufacturers and farmers are doing well just as he previously proclaimed we were experiencing a factory revitalization and that, in the middle of a devastating dairy crisis, our farmers were ‘over the hump.’ Wisconsinites can’t afford four more years of Trump’s broken promises, which is why we are working so hard to make sure this is the last State of the Union Address this president ever gives.”

Michigan Democrats: “Tonight, Governor Whitmer made Michigan proud by showing the American people what real leadership looks like as she highlighted her plans to grow Michigan jobs, expand access to health care, and fix the damn roads. Her tireless advocacy on behalf of Michigan working families stands in stark contrast to Donald Trump, who breaks every promise he makes and lies relentlessly to cover for his failures. I look forward to continuing to work with Governor Whitmer as we fight to hold Trump accountable for his broken promises to Michigan voters, re-elect Senator Gary Peters, turn every community in Michigan blue, and elect Democrats up and down the ticket.”

“A SLOW, PAINFUL GRIND:” FARMS KEEP CLOSING UNDER TRUMP.

HuffPost: Farm Bankruptcies Soared 20% Amid Trump Trade War. It’s The Highest Rate In 8 Years. “As President Donald Trump cast himself as a friend of the farmer at an Iowa campaign rally Thursday, newly released data revealed the number of farms declaring bankruptcies surged by 20% in 2019 — the highest in eight years. The American Farm Bureau attributed the figures, based on court bankruptcy data, to record farm debt and ‘headwinds on the trade front’ triggered by Trump’s trade war.”

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Farm bankruptcies keep rising in Minnesota and U.S. “‘The situation is just kind of dragging out and wearing people down,’ said Kevin Klair, director of the Center for Farm Financial Management at the University of Minnesota Extension. ‘The big difference between this and the 1980s is we’re not falling off a cliff. It’s a slow, painful grind.’”

Carolina Journal: Rising N.C. farm bankruptcies — canary in the coal mine? “Family farm bankruptcies are on the rise in North Carolina, a signal the rest of the state’s farm economy could be in trouble. […] ‘This latest report is not a surprise to the agriculture community,’ [state Sen. Brent Jackson, R-Sampson] said. ‘Agriculture has been and continues to be in dire straits.’”

KIWA: Iowa Sees Farm Bankruptcies Almost Double In 2019. “A Farm Bureau report says Iowa saw 27 farms file for bankruptcy during 2019. That’s up from just 14 farm bankruptcies the previous year. Chad Hart, an agricultural economist at Iowa State University, says there may be more bankruptcy filings in coming years as the federal government ends trade mitigation payments that supplement farm income.”

PENCE AND DEVOS GOT SCHOOLED IN THE KEYSTONE STATE. Mike Pence and Betsy DeVos were in Pennsylvania trying to once again spin Trump’s failed policies but the Pennsylvania Democrats were there to set the record straight and point out their endless broken promises on education.

• PennLive: “‘Trump and DeVos’s record on education is just like every other part of the Trump agenda. It works for their rich friends and big corporations while students and working families get left behind,’ said Nancy Patton Mills, the chairwoman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.”

• Carlisle Sentinel: “‘It’s clear that Betsy DeVos and her Department of Education is more concerned with appeasing wealthy special interests than helping working families in Pennsylvania,’ Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said earlier on Wednesday.”

• Associated Press: “Democrats and teachers’ union leaders criticized Trump’s education policies. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, who was in Philadelphia on Wednesday to discuss efforts to deal with lead, asbestos and other environmental hazards in aging school buildings, said Trump has ‘destabilized, demoralized, decimated, defunded and denigrated public schools.’”

**TRUMP’S ECONOMIC LIES CALLED OUT**

Washington Post: Trump touts his economy as ‘the best it has ever been.’ The data doesn’t show that.

Washington Monthly: Donald Trump’s Economic Record Isn’t What He Says It Is

Brookings: Trump’s State of the Union declared we’re in a “blue-collar boom.” Workers don’t agree.

Make sure to follow the DNC’s War Room (@DNCWarRoom) to get real-time updates on Trump’s abuses of power and broken promises.

Happy Friday!

The DNC Comms Team