Donald
John Trump has been impeached, and to let him tell it, that isn’t
bothering him, and we’d believe him if he hadn’t posted
more than tweets in just one day. But his persistent overuse of the
word “hoax,” both to refer to impeachment and to anything
else he doesn’t like (see: climate change), proves otherwise.
45
delivered remarks during a keynote speech at the World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland but then declined to participate in the
scheduled question and answer session afterwards. During his speech,
Trump behaved in character, providing his audience with “the
big brag.” As usual, he had some trouble with the truth,
complaining about the economy he inherited.
“America’s
economy was in a rather dismal state,” he said. These comments
clearly ignore the work that President Barack Obama did to pull us
out of the Great Recession. Of course, to let 45 tell it, President
Obama did nothing right. But as the unemployment rate fell during
Obama’s tenure, 45 dismissed the progress, arguing that the
statistics were wrong. Now that the unemployment rate is at a 50-year
low, he is happy to quote the Bureau of Labor Statistics same data to
tout the improvement he has supposedly made in the economy.
Atypically,
45 seemed to stick to his script during his speech, avoiding the
adlibs and ad hominem attacks he often makes headlines for. Since he
was booed after his post-speech Q&A at Davos in 2018, I suppose
he was not eager to repeat the experience. Still, he was unable to
stick to basic facts, exaggerating his successes and minimizing his
failures.
Take
the growth rate, for example. According to the Bureau of Economic
Analysis, when President Obama left office in the last quarter of
2016, the US had a growth rate of 3.5 percent. During the third
quarter of 2019 (the latest data available), growth was not much
higher at 3.8 percent.
Growth
rates, however, fluctuate. While during some quarters 45 has presided
over an economy growing at nearly six percent, he had also seen
growth rates as low as 3.8 percent, and economists project the growth
rate is slowing. In contrast, President Obama experienced growth
rates, after the great recession ended, ranging from as low as three
percent to higher than five percent. He also did so without the
stimulus of a tax cut that favored the wealthy.
The
Trump growth rates are both a result of ill-advised,
deficit-expanding tax cuts, and an inherited record-breaking
Obama-era expansion.
45
said he would expand manufacturing jobs. Really? In 2019 fewer than
46,000 manufacturing jobs were created, compared to 264,000 the
previous year. The decrease in manufacturing jobs is likely due to
his recently imposed tariffs.
So
why was 45 boasting in Switzerland? Mostly because his impeachment
trial started at the same time as the World Economic Forum. Too bad
that strategy didn’t work. The news was focused on
impeachment, all the time, while the World Economic Forum is getting
far less attention. His upbeat and exaggerated claim of economic
success was designed to deflect both from impeachment, and from his
party’s shenanigans.
When
45 talks about the US economy, he never talks about poverty or people
at the bottom, largely because he does not much care about them. His
administration frequently shows this disdain for the poor by
implementing new rules targeting the disadvantaged. Thanks to a
policy change on SNAP eligibility, 700,000 people will no longer be
able to receive food stamps. Is this a necessary byproduct of
economic growth? Further, the Department of Agriculture has taken us
all the way to the Reagan days when ketchup was declared a vegetable!
Now, many of the changes that First Lady Michelle Obama advocated for
have been rolled back under this administration. Schools will be
able to cut the amount of fruits and vegetables that students are
served, increase allowable sodium content in foods and get away with
offering burgers and pizza as full meals. This is a leap backward,
especially when you consider that most of the children who consume
school lunches are low and moderate income.
While
world poverty is a challenge, 45 is hardly likely to even mention our
domestic poverty to an audience full of world leaders. Thus, he was
complimented for his “optimism” which is a far off idea
and outright joke to many Americans who are hurting under this
administration.
Deflection,
deflection, deflection. 45 may have run away from impeachment in
Davos, but he can’t hide from it. And while the Senate is
likely to acquit 45 on the charges against him, the majority of the
House of Representatives voted for impeachment. It is part of his
legacy.
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