The Hill has a misleading piece entitled “Biden is delivering the fastest economic recovery in history. Why hasn’t anyone noticed?”
Even crooner Barbra Streisand agrees.
A good quote from The Hill story: “Under Biden, the American economy has recovered from its Trump-era lows with remarkable speed.” As Leslie Knope said “That seems like an unfair phrasing.”
Hmm. Well, here is a chart that best explains the “Biden Miracle.” It shows the growth in Federal expenditures from the previous year during the banking crisis and then the COVID crisis. During the banking crisis, the increase in Federal expenditures (red) was normal. It was the increase in The Fed’s balance sheet (blue) that was staggering. But for the mini-recession related to COVID (only two months so you can barely see it on the chart below), it was the growth in Federal expenditures (red) combined with another round of staggering Federal Reserve stimulus (blue).
A different view of Federal “Stimulypto” is show below. Since COVID and the election of Joe Biden as President, Fed monetary stimulus is at an all-time high and Federal expenditures, while they have slowed, are still above the pre-COVID spending levels.
Please note that the massive surge in Federal expenditures and Fed monetary stimulus began under Trump, but were only continued under Biden. That is why no one notices … it was Trump.
And if we look at the 10Y-2Y Treasury curve slope, the US is slippin’ into darkness since the slope typically rises after a recession, then falls. And we are in the falling (or slippin’) stage.
So, President Biden is benefiting from Trump’s and The Fed’s Stimulypto. I don’t expect partisan outlets like The Hill or crooner Barbra Streisand to look at the data.
With Build Back (Inflation) Better not passing in the US Senate, I fully expect The Federal Reserve to continue “low riding” interest rates. Inflation will probably cool as well as Federal expenditure growth slows.
So, Streisand’s statement should have said “Joe Biden’s economic record in his first year is the best in 40 years. The media largely ignores this … because the unsustainable Federal stimulus began under Trump, not Biden.”
Another thing The Hill and Barbra Streisand left out was declining REAL average hourly earnings growth (that is, average hourly earnings YoY – inflation).
Biden’s real contribution? Anti-fossil fuels actions have driven up energy prices. Regular gasoline prices, for example, are up 45% under Biden.
If The Fed actually follows through and removes COVID stimulus and Congress doesn’t keep the incredible rate Federal spending growing, I sincerely doubt that GDP will continue at this hot pace.
