259 upvotes, 16 direct replies (showing 16)
View submission: Thoughts on trump’s economy?
I think a lot of people, especially since we were in middle or high school during Trump’s first term, tend to oversimplify things by thinking “Trump = good economy” and “Biden = bad economy,” as if the president alone was the key factor in how the economy performs. It’s easy to forget that the pandemic was a major global disruption, and that alone had a huge impact on economies worldwide. When you look at how other developed countries handled inflation and recovery, the U.S. actually fared better in a lot of areas. However then you’re asking Americans to, you know, actually acknowledge or learn from another country that isn’t their own, which is unfortunately a hard ask for many.
However it also doesn’t help that many Democrats didn’t acknowledge the economic hardship either, with some going so far as to say “what are you talking about, the economy is good, just look at the stock market” as if that’s the only indicator of people’s financial health. Felt very dismissive to the people struggling to pay rent or put food on the table. By the time they did, many saw it as too little too late.
Comment by Tokidoki_Haru at 10/03/2025 at 19:31 UTC
116 upvotes, 13 direct replies
I am one of the many Democrats who ardently believed that inflation was transitory. And I continue to stand by that belief and feel vindicated when they announced the "soft landing" in mid 2024. We did not get hyperinflation like what many people claimed in 2022. We did not get recession like what people claimed in 2023.
We overcame the problem.
What Dems could have additionally done was explore ways on how to mitigate the effects on average person rather than rely purely on the Federal Reserve to raise rates to combat inflation, even as the Biden Admin went all out on additional inflationary fiscal policy under the IRA and CHIPS Act.
For one, extending the child tax credit from the pandemic era and realizing earlier just how bad the bird flu would impact food prices.
Comment by Wootz_Steel_ at 10/03/2025 at 19:39 UTC
59 upvotes, 5 direct replies
According to economists who study this for a living, the democrats did actually bring the economy back from its COVID downturn. Biden didn't eliminate inflation, but his policies grinded it to a halt. To the point where the Fed actually didn't increase interest rates for the first time in years.
The interesting thing is how people's perceptions of the economy have no bearing in reality. Even when americans are objectively better off than they were before (in terms of disposable income, purchasing power, and other measurable metrics) their views will always come second to political opinions.
Comment by turkey_sandwiches at 10/03/2025 at 19:58 UTC
32 upvotes, 3 direct replies
The economy WAS good under Biden. For many decades now, the economy suffers under Republican presidents and recovers under Democrat presidents. There is actual data that shows this, not just some orange guy's feelings.
Comment by HarbingerDe at 10/03/2025 at 20:02 UTC
31 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Ironically, this time, the president IS single handedly responsible for the economy tanking.
There isn't a single economist, corporation, or financial analyst who will tell you that implementing a blanket 25% tariff on your two largest trading partners (or constantly threatening to do so, doing so, then reversing that decision) is good for the economy.
Everyone knew this would tank the economy due to the increased cost of imported goods and uncertainty, forcing businesses to pause new investments while they wait to see where the chips fall.
The situation is unprecedented and uniquely stupid. So uniquely stupid that you can pretty easily surmise that this is Trump and ONLY Trump's doing - none of his advisors or corporate lobbyist would ask for his.
Every time he implements the tariffs, they all call him in a panic, demanding he removes them.
Comment by twoiseight at 10/03/2025 at 20:41 UTC
14 upvotes, 0 direct replies
... oversimplify things by thinking “Trump = good economy” and “Biden = bad economy”
This was very close to the messaging on the campaign signage before the election, at least in eastern PA. "Trump Low Prices | Kamala High Prices" "Trump Low Taxes | Kamala High Taxes" "Trump Safety | Kamala Crime" etc. The signs echo the soundbites echo the sentiment; in as few words as possible, just impose a feeling. If you can do that, the rest doesn't matter.
Comment by Oolongteabagger2233 at 10/03/2025 at 21:04 UTC
10 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Felt very dismissive to the people struggling to pay rent or put food on the table. By the time they did, many saw it as too little too late
Now they get a shit stock market, higher prices, a looming recession, and no social safety net. Good job losers!
Comment by langatang29 at 10/03/2025 at 19:19 UTC
8 upvotes, 2 direct replies
That’s a good take, I’d say. I think that generally, presidents only have so much affect on the overall economy. In trumps case, however, that effect seems to be much larger simply because of the things he’s saying in public and the actions he’s taking and endorsing that are eroding public and global trust in the US as a trade partner. I’d love to be able to say that this was unexpected but many who have been paying attention saw this coming a mile away.
I’m a cos-gender, white, male, so while I hate a lot of the social decisions he’s been making, very few of those directly affect me or my family. The looming economic impacts, though, have kept me up at night for a while…
Comment by Definitelymostlikely at 10/03/2025 at 21:55 UTC
4 upvotes, 1 direct replies
That's not just younger people thats most people in general.
Economics is far beyond the mental capacities of most americans
Comment by JealousAwareness3100 at 10/03/2025 at 23:23 UTC
5 upvotes, 2 direct replies
The economy *was* good under Biden, though. By pretty much all economic indicators. We weren’t talking about just the stock market. Dems aren’t huge on the stock market performance; that’s usually been a Republican talking point. And we had the best post-COVID economy in the entire developed world. I’m not sure what we are supposed to do to level with you. You *felt* like it wasn’t good.
Comment by takexthexbridge at 10/03/2025 at 23:15 UTC
3 upvotes, 0 direct replies
My experience is that if you tried to dig into any detail of the good and bad of the economy and any detail as to why or why not about the economy, it wasn’t worth the time or effort because, to your point, their thinking seemed to begin and end at “Biden is president and economy is bad for me, therefore Biden is bad for the economy.” They couldn’t be bothered with any nuanced or detailed discussion beyond that. And to be fair, I experienced this with all ages of people, including my dad who was almost 60 during the election year.
Comment by not-sinking-yet at 11/03/2025 at 01:57 UTC
2 upvotes, 0 direct replies
As an economist I continue to hold the position that the economy was in very good condition at the end of Biden’s term. Inflation did flare up for three quarters and continued to be higher than the Fed’s target, however real wages were also up.
Wages had been increased to compensate for the increase in consumer prices. What’s more is that the percent growth in real wages was higher at lower income levels. Perception and reality are not always synchronous and sometimes we believe what we’re told, even when it’s wrong
Comment by firechaox at 11/03/2025 at 07:11 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Uh. Lots of everyone did talk about the nuances of the economy, and that there was the global spike in inflation, that was caused by Covid economies, ans that relative to every single peer the USA was performing really strongly. Everyone was just like “stop gaslighting me” and “but mah economic vibes”. And that’s how we got this.
This is not on people failing to explain it, we were all there explaining the nuance. This is on people not even wanting to even hear the nuance or the explanation.
Comment by zubuneri at 11/03/2025 at 00:46 UTC
1 upvotes, 1 direct replies
I guess some democrats might have pointed to the stock market, but I don’t think most of them did. The stock market isn’t a good indicator of the economy; it’s all speculation.
Also, you’re right about the miscommunication on “the economy”. Biden had a great economy on paper the way economists track it; GDP, job growth, unemployment rate, etc. in common parlance, however, people generally referred to the economy as “how much things cost”. Democrats need to drive that distinction better. A good economy can occur even when things are expensive for everyday Americans. They need to work on making both the economy and “the economy” better.
Trump is going to fuck up both the economy and the cost of everything.
Comment by Robin_games at 11/03/2025 at 15:19 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Trump might be the first president in history to twice personally fuck up the economy.
1. first term he played down covid and wasn't going to address it because he thought it would kill blue states, he continued to repeat information about fake cures on tv. he then sent checks to everyone which caused massive inflation (good or bad on the checks it's still the outcome)
2. he literally tanked the economy in a month causing huge boycotts globally and initiating a trade war with an idea that was jet fuel for the great depression.
Comment by Natural_Bus6271 at 10/03/2025 at 22:44 UTC
0 upvotes, 1 direct replies
However it also doesn’t help that many Democrats didn’t acknowledge the economic hardship either, with some going so far as to say “what are you talking about, the economy is good, just look at the stock market” as if that’s the only indicator of people’s financial health. Felt very dismissive to the people struggling to pay rent or put food on the table. By the time they did, many saw it as too little too late.
I think you absolutely NAILED it with this statement. I really think the Biden administration dragging their feet on addressing housing and food costs was their undoing.
Comment by Tazrizen at 11/03/2025 at 09:03 UTC
1 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Finally a single sound fucking take. Take this updoot.