During his visit to Rehoboth Beach, Del., on Monday, President Biden took time away from falling to answer a few questions. A reporter dared to ask him about the slowing economy.
Uncle Joe does not like “tough” questions.
TRANSCRIPT:
REPORTER: “Economists are saying recession is more likely than ever.”
BIDEN: (Interrupts): “Not — the majority are not saying that. Come on, don’t make things up, OK? Now you sound like a Republican politician. I’m joking. That was a joke. That was a joke. But all kidding aside, no I don’t think it is.”
He’s got jokes, ladies and gentlemen.
On a side note, I wonder if the reporter was more offended by the president accusing her of making things up or sounding like a Republican? This we will never know.
Related: Why the Biden Economy Is Collapsing Around Us
What we do know is that there are growing concerns about an impending recession. Not just from reporters who sound like Republican politicians, but from economists.
The New York Post:
The US economy is more likely than not to sink into a recession this year as the Federal Reserve tightens monetary policy in its bid to cool decades-high inflation, economists warned Monday.
‘Disruptions in the energy and food sectors, coupled with declining consumer sentiment, are contributing to a looming economic slowdown in the US and abroad,’ Nomura economists Aichi Amemiya and Robert Dent wrote in a note Monday.
Meanwhile, the Fed’s sharper-than-expected interest rate hikes are likely to hurt growth in the near term.
‘With rapidly slowing growth momentum and a Fed committed to restoring price stability, we believe a mild recession starting in the fourth quarter of 2022 is now more likely than not,’ the note from the investment bank said, according to Bloomberg.
It’s not just the New York Post —a quick, simple internet search of economists sounding the recession alarm reveals stories from Bloomberg, Financial Times, The Washington Post, and CNBC, among others.
Biden would most likely say that “the majority (of economists) are not saying that. Come on!”
But keep in mind, that the Biden administration also argued that inflation was transitory.
They say things.
It’s not just the opinion of a majority of economists that the president needs to worry about. A perfect storm of runaway inflation, high gas prices, skyrocketing interest rates, and shortages at the grocery store have spiraled consumer sentiment to an all-time low. This has driven Americans to Google the word “recession” in a way that the president would think makes them sound like Republican politicians.
Consumer confidence has fallen to an all-time low. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index hit a record lows of 50.2 in June, as a deteriorating economy, rising costs and concern about personal finances hit home. Economic slowdown is front of mind for millions of Americans. Google Trends data showing more people in the US have been looking up the word “recession” this week than at any time since 2004.
The president can continue to live in a delusional bubble that makes him believe we aren’t heading toward a recession, that his response to this economic crisis has been competent, and that it’s a good idea for him to ride a bike.
But the truth is, his performance as president has been a joke.
And just like with his joke with that reporter on Monday, nobody is laughing.
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