President Donald Trump presided over one of the most robust economies in the history of the country and oversaw the fastest economic recovery in the nation’s history. Before the COVID-19 pandemic utterly devastated the U.S. economy, overall unemployment for U.S. workers was at a 50-year low and unemployment rates for Black and Hispanic people were at all-time lows. The country also experienced consistent and commendable economic growth from 2017-19, growing more than 2% each year. 2019 was also marked by record highs in the Dow Jones, Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 stock indices.
This economic success and stability was largely due to Trump’s commitment to laissez-faire and free market economic policies. Trump championed lowering the corporate tax rate to 21%, a figure more in line with other industrialized countries, significantly reduced individual tax rates for middle and upper class taxpayers and cut a number of cumbersome, largely Obama-era, regulations.
Trump also rejected many of the globalist policies that were harming the U.S. economy. For example, he instituted sanctions and tariffs on China which still has a manipulative planned economy. The authoritarian Chinese government additionally continues to engage in currency devaluation and human rights abuses. And, according to a 2019 Economic Policy Institute report, the U.S. has lost 3.7 million jobs to China since 2001.
The president has also taken a strict stance on illegal immigration, recognizing that unfettered illegal immigration threatens to undermine low skilled American workers and could place an undue burden on the U.S. economy.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns caused a swift and unprecedented collapse of the world economy. On March 16, the Dow Jones had its worst single-day point drop in history, falling more than 2,997 points. In April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the highest unemployment rate ever recorded at 14.7%.
Nevertheless, under Trump’s leadership, the economy has been recovering at a record pace, likely due, in large part, to the president’s push to reopen and restart the economy. According to a recently released report from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the economy grew at a record pace in the third quarter, increasing 7.4%. In June, the U.S. had a record jobs gain of 4.8 million. And, since April, the U.S. has gained more than 11.4 million jobs back, more than 52% of the jobs initially lost from the pandemic. The stock market is also rapidly recovering, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite already hitting record highs.
This recovery is occurring under the exemplary economic stewardship of President Trump.
Respectfully,
Kyle Reynolds
Kyle Reynolds serves as chairman of the Government Oversight and Reform Committee in IU Student Congress and is a member of the College Republicans at IU.
