An excellent Saturday
Essay from the WSJ:
Why the Economy Doesn’t Roar Anymore
By MARC LEVINSON
“The U.S. presidential
candidates have made the usual pile of promises, none more predictable than
their pledge to make the U.S. economy grow faster. With the economy struggling
to expand at 2% a year, they would have us believe that 3%, 4% or even 5%
growth is within reach.
But of all the promises uttered by Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton over the course of this disheartening campaign, none will be tougher to keep. Whoever sits in the Oval Office next year will swiftly find that faster productivity growth—the key to faster economic growth—isn’t something a president can decree. It might be wiser to accept the truth: The U.S. economy isn’t behaving badly. It is just being ordinary.”
But of all the promises uttered by Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton over the course of this disheartening campaign, none will be tougher to keep. Whoever sits in the Oval Office next year will swiftly find that faster productivity growth—the key to faster economic growth—isn’t something a president can decree. It might be wiser to accept the truth: The U.S. economy isn’t behaving badly. It is just being ordinary.”
Related:
Northwestern University economist Robert Gordon on US long run economic growth prospects: