You may have heard last week that 23 Nobel economists wrote that Vice President Kamala Harris’ economic plan is better for America than former President Donald Trump’s policies. This joint letter was led by the ultra-political Joseph Stiglitz. Yes, this is the infamous Joe Stiglitz. flew In 2007, he went to Caracas to support Hugo Chávez’s economic policies.
of letter He claims that President Trump’s economic plan will “lead to higher prices, wider deficits, and greater inequality.” They also warn of the risk of a global recession if Trump wins. All that was missing was the dead puppy prediction.
If these apocalyptic claims sound vaguely familiar, you have a good memory. As it turns out, this is exactly what many in this group of left-wing economists warned about in 2016. Here are some examples:
Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman fuming “He really looks like President Donald J. Trump now,” he wrote in the New York Times the morning after the 2016 election. [has won]and the market is plummeting. When can we expect them to recover?”
“We are probably facing a global recession with no end in sight,” he added.
Larry Summers, Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton and Chief Economist under President Obama warned: “Under the Trump administration, we expect a long recession to begin within 18 months. The damage will extend far beyond the United States.”
There were many more of these end-of-the-world prophecies.
They were all spectacularly wrong. economy It was exciting So did the stock market under the Trump administration.
And in 2021, many people on this same list of Nobel economists signed similar public agreements. letter He assures us that Biden’s policies will not be the cause. inflation. Oops. Inflation rate after 18 months There was a sudden increase This is the highest level since the Jimmy Carter era (9.1%).
I am also skeptical of some of President Trump’s positions. I’m not a fan of high customs duty Or special interest tax will be cut out. But what is undeniable is that the economic policies of 2016 worked their magic, as evidenced by the record increase in real income for the average household by $4,000 to $5,000. Conversely, under the Biden-Harris administration, incomes have declined in real terms. Oh, and someone should teach these ivory tower economists about inflation and income inequality. went Under the Trump administration, it’s not up, it’s down.
It is virtually impossible for anyone to exceed 1,000 in a prediction, but what is worth noting is that when it comes to Trump and Biden, they managed to record a perfect record in their crystal ball.
They were wrong every time.
Their disregard for common sense may be due to a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. As an example, they argue that President Trump’s tariffs will cause inflation, and they are also concerned that Trump’s tax cuts will cause inflation. Excuse me, sir, but tax cuts and tax increases cannot cause inflation at the same time. And when supply-side tax cuts increase production and labor, as happened with Presidents Reagan and Trump’s tax cuts, prices fall. (Stephen Moore: Here are 5 clear reasons why Trump tax cuts should be made permanent)
As an economist who cares about our profession, I wish Nobel economists would just admit they were wrong and stay out of politics. We should acknowledge that the real world is very different from the diagram on the blackboard, and then shut up. Or, even better, move to Venezuela, a worker’s paradise.
Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation and co-author of the new book, “The Trump Economic Miracle.”
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