Numbers Don’t Lie – When Leaders Misuse Them

The public often hears big claims from those in power. When a president says drug prices have fallen by 600 percent, many people pause to think about the math. A 600 % drop would mean a drug costing $100 now costs only $16, not $25 as some officials claim. The confusion comes from mixing “percent of the final price” with the usual meaning of a percentage decrease. In another example, a former attorney general said that seizures of fentanyl saved 119 million lives. That figure is comparable to the death toll of a medieval plague, far beyond what drug seizures can achieve. Such exaggerations turn statistics into flashy slogans instead of tools that help people compare facts. The problem grows when numbers are presented as unquestionable truths.If a department says it can deport 100 million people, the claim is mathematically impossible given the current population. These statements cut short any chance for debate because they are simply false. Mathematics teaches humility and clarity. Students learn that numbers have strict rules: a prime number cannot be altered by wishful thinking. When leaders ignore these rules, they lose the public’s trust in data and in rational discussion. To rebuild that trust, officials must use accurate numbers and explain how they were calculated. Public arguments should be grounded in shared definitions, not in inflated figures that serve political agendas. Only then can citizens make informed choices and leaders be held accountable.