- Reaction score
- 1,867
- Points
- 1,260
Trump administration 2024-2028
- Thread starter dimsum
- Start date
Nothing builds confidence in your economy and government like firing the statisticians who deliver economic numbers you don’t like.
In one stroke of the pen, Trump will make any and all economic numbers out of the U.S. a little more suspect, a little bit more unreliable.
- Reaction score
- 4,023
- Points
- 1,260
A long time ago when I worked in Prague I got introduced to Czech-Canadian who emigrated back there after a long proud tenure with StatsCan. He went back to head up the newly independent Czech Statistical Office. He said back then that he’s biggest challenge was getting his staff to actually do their job correctly in terms of reporting the numbers/stats ‘as they were’ - no matter if it was good news or bad news - just report it as it was and that he would take care of the rest and ‘protect’ them.
I wish I could remeber his name but after reading this news out of the US, I’m sure he had an up hill battle daily.
- Reaction score
- 4,023
- Points
- 1,260
I found the guy - quite the background story on him.
Edvard Outrata - Institut pro politiku a společnost
www.politikaspolecnost.cz
Yeah, the more I mull the whole “fire the statistician” thing, the more I realize both how pathetic and how damaging it is. Basic economic data is essential to so many different things. America typically does an excellent job of tracking stats and data, and revisions of past months’ data that are collected on a rolling basis are utterly normal. When a regime begins to fire people for telling the truth about fundamentals of the economy, that’s a really, really bad thing. Once you can’t rely on trustworthy data, how are you supposed to roll out informed and tailored policy worth a damn?
- Reaction score
- 5,448
- Points
- 1,260
Or firing all the inspectors-general for reasons. Or appointing unqualified hacks to senior positions in government. Or….
- Reaction score
- 5,487
- Points
- 1,260
HavokFour
Army.ca Veteran
- Reaction score
- 1,104
- Points
- 1,040
Another one.
www.nytimes.com
Army Secretary Orders West Point to Pull Appointment of Former Biden Official
The military academy’s appointment of Jen Easterly, who had been director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, was canceled after complaints from the far-right agitator Laura Loomer.
daftandbarmy
Army.ca Fossil
- Reaction score
- 39,594
- Points
- 1,160
'Chaotic' is a good way to sum things up this far...
According to Donald Trump’s White House, the US economy is booming, inflation is dead and jobs are surging. A blizzard of economic reports has cast a pall on such claims in recent days.
This week’s data on Trump’s early economic record was mixed – good, mad and ugly – with jobs numbers so weak he reached for the catchphrase he once used to build himself into a reality TV star: you’re fired.
Trump fires labor statistics chief hours after data showed jobs growth slowed
The picture is chaotic, with robust headline growth in the world’s largest economy, wild swings in trade, and a remarkable slowdown in the labor market.
For six months, Trump has staged an extraordinary campaign to overhaul the global economy and extract concessions from Washington’s allies and rivals by threatening and imposing steep tariffs on their US exports.
But the unpredictable, erratic rollout of this strategy has already had bizarre consequences.
On the surface, at least, this week’s deluge of data opened with good news: the US economy returned to growth in the second quarter, with gross domestic product (GDP) – a broad measure of economic health – expanding at a rate not seen since last summer.
But this followed an unexpected contraction in the first quarter, and underlined some more concerning figures, such as a 15.6% drop in private domestic investment. Businesses have been struggling to keep up with the hour-by-hour jerks and jolts on sweeping economies policies.
Yes, there was good growth in the last quarter but in the first six months, the US economy grew at a mediocre 1.2%. The Wall Street Journal called it “the weirdest GDP report ever”.
www.theguardian.com
Despite president’s claims of an economic boom, picture is chaotic – healthy GDP growth but weak jobs figuresAccording to Donald Trump’s White House, the US economy is booming, inflation is dead and jobs are surging. A blizzard of economic reports has cast a pall on such claims in recent days.
This week’s data on Trump’s early economic record was mixed – good, mad and ugly – with jobs numbers so weak he reached for the catchphrase he once used to build himself into a reality TV star: you’re fired.
Trump fires labor statistics chief hours after data showed jobs growth slowed
The picture is chaotic, with robust headline growth in the world’s largest economy, wild swings in trade, and a remarkable slowdown in the labor market.
For six months, Trump has staged an extraordinary campaign to overhaul the global economy and extract concessions from Washington’s allies and rivals by threatening and imposing steep tariffs on their US exports.
But the unpredictable, erratic rollout of this strategy has already had bizarre consequences.
On the surface, at least, this week’s deluge of data opened with good news: the US economy returned to growth in the second quarter, with gross domestic product (GDP) – a broad measure of economic health – expanding at a rate not seen since last summer.
But this followed an unexpected contraction in the first quarter, and underlined some more concerning figures, such as a 15.6% drop in private domestic investment. Businesses have been struggling to keep up with the hour-by-hour jerks and jolts on sweeping economies policies.
Yes, there was good growth in the last quarter but in the first six months, the US economy grew at a mediocre 1.2%. The Wall Street Journal called it “the weirdest GDP report ever”.
Good, mad and ugly: the US economy’s performance under Trump – in charts
Despite president’s claims of an economic boom, picture is chaotic – resilient GDP growth but weak jobs figures
www.theguardian.com
- Reaction score
- 6,516
- Points
- 1,260
C’mon, now - it worked in USSR 1.0, right? Right?
- Reaction score
- 6,516
- Points
- 1,260
October 2024 ....
... versus now
www.catholicnewsagency.com
ca.news.yahoo.com
VA notice to reg change attached.
Yeah, I know it's not a blanket ban affecting everyone in the U.S., but it could affect every state that has VA facilities (I'm guessing all 50), so this is how the at-the-far-edge folks can point & say, "told ya..." & stretch this narratively to a nation-wide ban (of a sort).
I can also imagine what a dog's breakfast it would be having federal facilities follow the "law of the state", too. Still, stand by for the narrative backlash.
... versus now
Trump administration proposes rule change to end abortion at VA facilities
The proposed regulatory change, submitted by the Department of Veterans Affairs on Aug. 1, must undergo a 30-day public comment period before it can be adopted.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
Trump administration revokes Biden era abortion rule for veterans
The Trump administration revoked a Biden era abortion rule on Friday that allows veterans to receive abortions under their medical package. The Department of Veteran Affairs is reversing a 2022 rule that provided access to abortion counseling and abortions to certain pregnant veterans in...
Yeah, I know it's not a blanket ban affecting everyone in the U.S., but it could affect every state that has VA facilities (I'm guessing all 50), so this is how the at-the-far-edge folks can point & say, "told ya..." & stretch this narratively to a nation-wide ban (of a sort).
I can also imagine what a dog's breakfast it would be having federal facilities follow the "law of the state", too. Still, stand by for the narrative backlash.
- Reaction score
- 26,153
- Points
- 1,360
Just a matter of time until Trump fires CEOs of GM, Ford and Stellantis…
$3BUSD tariff induced losses in Q2…
Pfft…
$3BUSD tariff induced losses in Q2…
Pfft…
daftandbarmy
Army.ca Fossil
- Reaction score
- 39,594
- Points
- 1,160
When manufacturing crashes, political careers sometimes follow...
After a Week of Mediocre Economic News, Trump Wants to Fire the Messenger
President Trump inherited an economy in excellent health, and the predictions that he would quickly cause a recession were wishcasting rather than forecasting.
But Trump has been doing his level best to disrupt the American economy, and in the latest batches of economic data, there are signs that he is having an impact.
Trump’s big economic idea, of course, is to reduce the amount of stuff that Americans buy from the rest of the world by imposing hefty tariffs, or taxes, on imports. Trump himself has acknowledged that this will cause some short-term pain, but he says that it will be worthwhile because it will produce a boom in domestic manufacturing.
So far, Americans are experiencing some costs but not the purported benefits.
Over the last three months, after revisions, the American economy added about 106,000 jobs — or less than a third of what is needed to keep pace with population growth. It’s the weakest three-month stretch since 2020, and there’s even more reason for worry in the details. While the unemployment rate remains low, at 4.2 percent, that is because a growing share of Americans aren’t even trying to find jobs. If the share of adults either working or looking had held steady over the last three months, the unemployment rate would be at almost 5 percent.
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The latest jobs data includes a sharp downward revision in estimated job growth in May and June as well as a relatively weak number for July, underscoring that predicting economic trends is a perilous business. We’re only beginning to get a clear picture of the first half of this year, let alone what’s going to happen next.
But wobbly job growth isn’t the only sign of increasing stress. Overall economic growth appears to have slowed in the second quarter and there are signs that tariffs are beginning to bite. The latest inflation readings, for June, showed that prices are rising a little more quickly. Consumers, the engine of the economy, are still spending, but at a slower pace than last year.
And what of Trump’s new economy? Well, that’s the worst news of all: Friday’s jobs report showed that manufacturing employment declined for the third straight month.
And what of the president? He responded to the bad news about jobs by trying to punish the messenger: He announced that he had directed his team to fire the head of the federal agency that compiles the employment numbers, a decision that threatens to undermine public confidence in the accuracy and integrity of federal economic data.
The economist John Maynard Keynes said that when the facts contradicted his opinions, he changed his mind. This president prefers to change the facts.
Opinion | After a Week of Mediocre Economic News, Trump Wants to Fire the Messenger
So far, Americans are experiencing costs but not the purported benefits of his attempt to remake the global economy.
luckily that's not one of the goals of the trump administration
- Reaction score
- 11,713
- Points
- 1,360
The US economy is absolutely booming in the Republican States though. I've been doing business there lately, the amount of infrastructure being built and the manufacturing boom occurring is amazing to see.
The Northern States + places like Cali though? Yah, they are losing ground.
The Northern States + places like Cali though? Yah, they are losing ground.
- Reaction score
- 4,023
- Points
- 1,260
Possibly
Or are those more southern states merely catching up in lacking/deficient infrastructure when compared to their northern counterparts?
My daughter leaves in 10 days to attend university in Pennsylvania on a soccer scholarship. Haven’t spent any time there before going down when she was invited to try out, was offered a spot/scholarship and then for some orientation.
Outside of Philly and somewhat Pittsburgh, PA seems to be a ‘lightly coloured’ red state. It sure has some clapped out industries/areas. Reminds me an awful lot of being back in Michigan visiting my Mom’s family.
Pennsylvania has extremely low minimum wages, even by US standards. For example, restaurant servers make 2.83$/hr…..
Here’s a list of the minimum wages of every state that geographically borders it.
- New York: Minimum wage is $15.00 per hour.
- New Jersey: Minimum wage is $15.13 per hour.
- Delaware: Minimum wage is $13.25 per hour.
- Maryland: Minimum wage is $15.00 per hour.
- West Virginia: Minimum wage is $15.00 per hour.
- Ohio: Minimum wage is $10.75 per hour.
Even West Virginia’s min wage is double that of PA - and West Virginia is dirt poor.