Commentary: Big Tent Ideas

STEPHEN MOORE: Nobel Economists Put Partisanship Over Economic Common Sense

You may have heard that last week, 23 Nobel economists wrote that Vice President Kamala Harris’s economic plan would be better for America than former President Donald Trump’s agenda. The joint letter was spearheaded by the hyper-political Joseph Stiglitz. Yes, this is the same Joe Stiglitz who infamously flew to Caracas to endorse Hugo Chavez’s economic policies in 2007.

The letter claims the Trump economic plan would “lead to higher prices, larger deficits, and greater inequality.” They also warn of the risk of a worldwide recession if Trump wins. All that was missing was the prediction of dead puppies.

If these apocalyptic claims sound vaguely familiar, you have a good memory. Turns out, this is exactly what many in this gang of leftist economists warned of in 2016. Here are a few examples:

Nobel laureate Paul Krugman fumed in The New York Times the morning after the 2016 election: “It really does now look like President Donald J. Trump [has won], and markets are plunging. When might we expect them to recover?”

“We are very probably looking at a global recession, with no end in sight,” he added.

Bill Clinton’s Treasury Secretary and Obama chief economist Larry Summers warned: “Under Trump, I would expect a protracted recession to begin within 18 months. The damage would be felt far beyond the United States.”

There were many more of these end -of-the-world prophecies laid out.

They were all spectacularly wrong. The economy boomed under Trump as did the stock market.

Then in 2021 many on this same list of Nobel economists signed a similar open letter assuring us that Biden’s policies wouldn’t cause inflation. Oops. Eighteen months later, the inflation rate surged to its highest level (9.1%) since the days of Jimmy Carter.

I too have skepticism on some of Trump’s positions. I’m not a fan of high tariffs or special interest tax carve outs. But what is undeniable is that the 2016 economic agenda worked like a charm — as measured by the record-breaking $4,000 to $5,000 gain in real incomes for average families. Conversely, incomes are down in real terms under Biden-Harris. Oh, and someone should tell these ivory-towered economists that inflation and income inequality went DOWN, not up, under Trump.

It’s virtually impossible for anyone to beat 1.000 in their predictions, but what is remarkable is that when it comes to Trump and Biden, they have managed to record a perfect record with their crystal balls.

They have been wrong every time.

Their disregard for common sense may be due to a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. As an example, they argue that Trump tariffs will cause inflation and then they worry that Trump tax cuts will cause inflation. Excuse me, professors, but tax cuts and tax increases can’t both cause inflation at the same time. And if supply side tax cuts increase production and work, they lower prices — as happened under Reagan and Trump tax rate reductions.

As an economist who cares about our profession, I’d love for these Nobel economists to simply admit they have been wrong and steer clear of politics. They should acknowledge that the real world is very different from the diagrams they draw on the chalk boards — and then just shut up. Or, better yet, move to the workers’ paradise of Venezuela.

Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation and co-author of the new book “The Trump Economic Miracle.”

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Featured Image: Screen Capture/CSPAN