G-D-P

From 2008 to 2016, high taxes and a restrictive regulatory environment reigned. During those years, we were told that government alone could fix the aftershocks of the great recession of 2008, that an $800 billion stimulus would do the trick. And when it didn't, we were told by Democrats that high unemployment and low GDP were the new normal—that they were structurally inherent in our economy and that the only solutions were higher taxes and even more government intervention.

As the 2016 elections approached, a "Democratic socialist" doubled down on the big government meme. His approach, parroted by his legions of followers, was the same tired "tax-the-rich, fair-share, free-healthcare/college, big-government" prescription that socialists have spouted for 70 years. Even today, a new generation of Democratic socialists voice the same nonsense, choosing to disregard the simple reality that it never, ever works, destroys jobs, leads to economic malaise, and reduces the freedom to live our lives unencumbered by government intervention.

In response to all of this we have a new administration that lowered taxes, reduced government regulation, offered a pro-business environment, demanded better trade deals and guess what? Yesterday, we achieved 4.1% GDP—an amazing achievement, given recent past history. So much for Democrat claims that high levels of GDP growth were unachievable. So much for their argument that lower taxes have little or no effect on the economy. So much for their assertion that government regulation doesn't have a negative impact on jobs, on business and on the financial well being of citizens. Given a booming economy and impressive GDP numbers, the current administration has proven that all of those claims were false.

The editors of the Wall Street Journal comment:

The lesson is that policies matter and so does the tone set by political leaders. For eight years Barack Obama told Americans that inequality was a bigger problem than slow economic growth, that stagnant wages were the fault of the rich, and that government through regulation and politically directed credit could create prosperity. The result was slow growth, and secular stagnation was the intellectual attempt to explain that policy failure.

Far too many Democrats refuse to accept that a robust economy helps everyone, including the constituencies that the Dems insist are economic victims whose only hope is government dependency. As unemployment for minority populations hits new lows every quarter, the Dems refusal to accept reality becomes ever more apparent—so much so, that a small, but growing segment of those same minority populations has begun to advocate #Walkaway. This is a nightmare scenario for Democrats, making it even more urgent to demonize the administration that has created this economic boom.

The WSJ editors conclude:

All of which is another reason to thank tax reform and deregulation for unleashing animal spirits and giving the expansion renewed life. It’s worth recalling that not a single Democrat in Congress voted for tax reform and nearly all of them opposed every vote to repeal the Obama Administration’s onerous rules.

But why should they? After all, the resultant boom has been a catalyst for #Walkaway.