James Carville…..
“It’s the ECONOMY Stupid’!
President’s and their political parties do NOT do Good with Lousy American Economies …
America’s economic mood continues to deteriorate as President Donald Trump carries on with his sweeping economic agenda.
Consumer confidence slid 7.2 points this month to a reading of 92.9, the Conference Board said Tuesday in its latest survey, reaching its lowest level since January 2021 and extending a decline that began in December, after the US presidential election. March’s decline was similar to February’s, underscoring the growing pessimism among US consumers.
Not only are Americans expecting higher inflation this year, but more of them are also predicting that the economy will slip into a recession, the Conference Board survey showed. That toxic combination of weakening growth and accelerating inflation resembles “stagflation,” and Federal Reserve officials also see the US economy trending in that direction.
Americans’ expectations “for income, business, and labor market conditions” in the coming year fell sharply this month, the survey showed, declining 9.6 points to 65.2, the lowest level in 12 years. Meanwhile, the share of respondents expecting a recession in the next 12 months held steady in March at a nine-month high.
Trump’s trade spat with foreign countries, a key tenet of his economic agenda, has been both baffling and contentious: Earlier this month after imposing 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, those duties were quickly delayed for another month after complaints from business leaders; then, after the European Union retaliated to Trump’s metal tariffs, the president continued to up the ante by threatening a mega 200% tariff on European alcohol.
And upcoming tariffs aimed at matching those that foreign countries impose on the United States — so-called reciprocal tariffs slated for April 2 — might be watered down.
That frenetic back-and-forth has evoked high levels of uncertainty among American consumers, businesses and investors, which is making it difficult to plan ahead, according to various surveys. It’s also stoking fears that the economy could be barreling toward stagflation…..
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