First Quarter Economy Delivers Weakest Performance in 3 Years
‘Expanding at an Annual Rate of Only 0.7 Percent’
President Donald Trump may be tweeting and telling everyone he can what a great job he’s doing, but the just-released first-quarter results from the Commerce Dept. paint a vastly different picture.Â
“The economy barely grew, expanding at an annual rate of only 0.7 percent,” in the first quarter, according to The New York Times, which notes “just two months ago, economists predicted that first-quarter growth would be roughly 2 percent.”
The paper of record calls it “a sharp decline from the 2.1 percent annual rate recorded in the final quarter of last year,” and “the weakest quarterly showing in three years.”
“The first-quarter performance upset expectations for a Trump bump at the start of 2017.”
On Twitter, many were quick to blame – or mock – President Trump:
This week administration officials said they’re hoping for 3% annual growth. https://t.co/DOmO0JJLWw
— Ed O’Keefe (@edatpost) April 28, 2017
Trump’s Contract with the American Voter promised 4% annual growth https://t.co/BlCs7qxNFm
— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) April 28, 2017
BREAKING: Trump administration to replace GDP number with quarterly reminder of how many electoral votes Trump won https://t.co/JEjNxKigKW
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) April 28, 2017
Remember, Trump has repeatedly said that this is his economy https://t.co/9n7DGaemFU
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) April 28, 2017
Not the news you want on your first report card. But rest assured, this will become his rallying cry for tax cuts. https://t.co/koAXEDozoD
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) April 28, 2017
I’d like to go back to winning, please. https://t.co/QYt6wovm6u
— Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser) April 28, 2017
Thanks, Trump. https://t.co/qurGM3lXZV
— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) April 28, 2017
I take no joy in these numbers, but Trump’s erratic behavior/uncertainty is already hurting our economy. https://t.co/XWfyMlGNFQ
— Amy Siskind (@Amy_Siskind) April 28, 2017
“He’ll be good with the economy!” pic.twitter.com/ya26LVQSYP
— Michael (@MikeyJonJon) April 28, 2017
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Image by Kaiyan via Flickr and a CC licenseÂ
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