While Trump crows about a growing economy, 701 economists say Americans should vote him out

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While Trump crows about a growing economy, 701 economists say Americans should vote him out
Meteor Blades
Daily Kos Staff
Thursday October 22, 2020 · 11:51 AM EDT


Next Thursday, the government will report growth in gross domestic product (GDP) for the third quarter, which ended Sept. 30. The median forecast of surveyed economic analysts is for a GDP growth of 31.8%, or 7.95% annually, a huge rise. Trumpspeak will, of course, be dedicated to the notion that this proves the economy is being quickly rebuilt into the-best-ever-in-American-history without a mention that the GDP rise comes on the heels of a GDP plunge of 31.4% in the second quarter. In fact, much in the news points to something quite far from best ever. For instance, the Federal Reserve’s report on economic activity known as the Beige Book called growth in most of the country “slight to modest.” The Conference Board’s leading economic indicators show growth, “but the decelerating pace of improvement suggests the U.S. economy could be losing momentum heading into the final quarter of 2020,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, the board’s senior director of economic research. Unemployment levels are devastating, with at least 10.7 million fewer American workers on the job now than in pre-pandemic February.

Whatever the outlook for the rest of the year, 701 economists, including seven Nobel laureates and others of prominence, are taking a longer view and have written a pointed open letter warning against reelecting the squatter in the White House. They wrote, “In just one term in office, Donald Trump has rendered the United States unrecognizable, and has faced no consequences for doing so. He has carried out a sustained assault on democratic institutions, put his family members in charge of critical government functions during a pandemic, called for his political opponents to be thrown in prison, normalized corruption, and weakened the economic recovery with selfish and reckless behavior. For these reasons, we strongly recommend that the electorate do what no one else can: reclaim your democracy by voting to remove Donald Trump from office."

Some excerpts from the letter:

His managerial incompetence has damaged the credibility and effectiveness of the public sector. Agencies cycle through acting heads, disgruntled former staffers frequently appear in the media with dire warnings, and family members are put in charge of critical pandemic response initiatives.

He claimed to have the unique ability to generate growth (in real GDP) of between 4% and 6%, but never surpassed 2.9% in his first three years in office. Furthermore, analysts at Goldman Sachs and Moody’s Analytics have projected that Joe Biden’s economic plans, if implemented, would actually generate faster growth in both employment and real GDP. [...]

His administration’s public health response to COVID-19 was described by medical scientists as having turned "...a crisis into a tragedy" and as having underperformed relative to other democracies by "orders of magnitude." [...]

He regularly spreads dangerous misinformation, even during times of crisis, and has been the single largest source of misinformation during the pandemic. [...]

He has a poorly-informed, zero-sum view of economics that engenders needless viciousness and cruelty.

Among the signers are Nobel laureates Paul Milgrom (2020), Oliver Hart (2016), Alvin Roth (2012), and George Akerlof, the 2001 Nobel-winning husband of former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.

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https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/10/22/1988587/-While-Trump-crows-about-a-growing-economy-701-economists-say-Americans-should-vote-him-out