As part of Donald Trump’s spectacularly inappropriate speech to U.S. troops stationed in Japan, the president included one of his favorite talking points, though he added a new detail that made it worse.

Referring to his alleged successes in securing foreign investments in the U.S., the Republican boasted, “We did more than $17 trillion in eight months, and I think by the time we finish up our first year, we’re gonna be over $20 [trillion] or $21 trillion.” Toward the end of the remarks, he added, “I told you, $17 trillion, but it’s gonna be $20 [trillion], $21 trillion. And that’s numbers that have never been heard of before.”

In a way, that’s true: These are investment totals that no one’s ever heard before. That said, they’re also figures with no basis in reality.

It’s been almost comical lately to watch the moving target. Trump started by claiming the total was $17 trillion. It was soon after revised to “very close to $18 trillion.”

That was two weeks ago. In the days that followed, the new total was “$18 trillion,” followed by “over $18 trillion.” The figure then climbed to “$19 trillion.”

Early last week, Trump said the total “could be $20 trillion” by the end of the year, which the president described as “unbelievable.” (In a literal sense, I agree.)

Two days later, he said it would be “$20 trillion,” then “over $20 trillion,” leading up to his new total of “$21 trillion.”

I half-expect the Republican to start exaggerating by making up new words. (“Thanks to my awesomeness, we’ve secured eleventeen gajillion dollars in foreign investments…”)

Recommended

Maddowblog

When Trump talks about ‘trillions,’ does he understand what the word means?

Steve Benen

Maddowblog

Toyota downplays Trump’s dubious claim about a $10 billion investment

Steve Benen

If recent history is any guide, no amount of fact-checking will stop Trump from inflating these figures, but for those interested in reality, it’s necessary to acknowledge the simple fact that the president’s figures are bonkers.

CNN recently reported, “Trump’s own White House website values the ‘major investment announcements’ this term at ‘$8.8 trillion,’ around half the ‘$17 trillion’ and ‘$18 trillion’ numbers Trump used out loud this week. And an item-by-item CNN review of the top 10 items on the White House’s list shows that even the ‘$8.8 trillion’ number is itself a big exaggeration.”

A New York Times fact-check report added that the number used by the White House “includes broad pledges and previously announced projects. And more than half of that amount comes from informal pledges from foreign countries to invest in the United States that experts warn may be unrealistic.”

In other words, those expecting Trump to double the size of the U.S. economy through foreign investments, based on the president’s outlandish boasts, are setting themselves up for disappointment.

Update: Shortly after this piece was published, the president upped the ante, declaring, “We’ll probably be at maybe even $22 trillion in investments coming into our country by the end of the first year of my second term.”