The Biden administration is in the midst of trying to dance on the head of a pin by redefining the term “recession.” That ploy comes in advance of an economic report that is almost certainly going to show that 2Q GDP growth was negative, following a 1Q GDP that dropped by -1.6 percent.
Since the beginning of time, there have been two consecutive quarters with negative growth. The label was given to every instance of such a period in recent history. All of the sudden, though, the rush is on to completely change the meaning of what a recession is so that the White House doesn’t have to face that political reality. The mainstream media and administration officials are trying to deceive the American people by making absurd and historically incorrect claims.
Then there’s White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who wants to have her cake and eat it too. On the other hand, she claims that only two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth are acceptable. isn’t While she is in a recession, her stubborn refusal to define the term also shows that she does not accept it. On that front, Fox News’ Peter Doocy spun her around in circles during Wednesday’s briefing.
Doocy – If everything is going well, why are WH officials trying to redefine recession
KJP – No. We are not redefining [it].
Doocy: “If we all understand [it] to be 2 consecutive quarters…& you have WH…say…that’s not…how is that not redefining [it]? pic.twitter.com/FrQXLQIoJg
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) July 27, 2022
It’s almost hard not to admire Jean-Pierre’s mixture of arrogance, stupidity and ignorance. Somehow, Jean-Pierre manages to know absolutely nothing about what she speaks of while acting as if she knows everything, and she’s getting better at doing it with a straight face.
In its absolute determination to redefine the meaning of a recession, the White House has made no attempt. Since the inception of modern economics, the meaning has never been challenged. Only now that Joe Biden might be saddled with one is the matter even in question, and it’s only in question to those who want to look Americans in the eye and tell them that the moon is made of cheese. However, the moon isn’t actually made of cheese.
Doocy wasn’t done with his line of questioning, though. He then hit Jean-Pierre with a stunner, quoting the White House’s own top economic advisor, Brian Deese, saying in 2008 that a recession is two straight quarters of negative growth.
Doocy: Other than the president, what’s the big deal?
KJP: “I can speak to–I can speak to you what he said yesterday in front of all of you, which is the last thing that you just repeated. There are many factors…The textbook defintion…is not 2 negative quarters” (4/4) pic.twitter.com/dLpNtrVPEk
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) July 27, 2022
All around, we move. Jean-Pierre is nothing if she isn’t shameless. And while I realize she’s speaking for the White House, you’d think she’d come up with a better spin than this. Deese stated what he meant because he was true to his words. He has only now changed his tune for political reasons. It is ridiculous to ignore this.
Further, the White House’s game of claiming that the technical definition of a recession no longer applies while at the same time refusing to provide what definition they are using is simply not acceptable. Americans should not be jerked around like this, and they shouldn’t be gas-lit by preposterous goalpost moving mean purely to protect the president. It is clear that the current recession has ended. Let’s stop with this absurdity.
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