Completely Wrong Is the Word on Biden’s Critique of Trump’s Tax Cuts

The 45th president’s tax cuts increased average real wages by more than $6,000 — while Bidenomics has seen typical family income drop more than $4,000.

AP/Alex Brandon
President Biden on January 25, 2024, at Superior, Wisconsin. AP/Alex Brandon

President Biden, once again, selling Bidenomics in Wisconsin Thursday. He got a good 3.3 percent GDP number for the fourth quarter of 2023, following 4.9 percent in the third quarter. And, if I were he, I would be bragging about it too.

And the inflation rate has come down. All is fair in love, war, and politics. Brag when you can. I get it. I’ve been there. Of course, Mr. Biden can’t help himself. Because, then, he goes hog-wild with dumb things about President Trump’s economic achievements.

Here’s something Mr. Biden said: “My predecessor, he chose a different course. Trickle down economics, cut taxes for the very wealthy and big corporations, increasing the deficit significantly. That’s exactly what happened.” 

Mr. Biden added that Mr. Trump “stripped good paying jobs and shipped them overseas.” All these attacks are completely wrong, as I’ve said hundreds of times.

Mr. Trump’s tax cuts increased average real wages by more than $6,000 — while Bidenomics has seen typical family income drop more than $4,000.

Distinguished studies of the corporate tax cuts showed they produced more investment, higher real wages, more productivity, helped the lower incomes more than the upper incomes, and paid for themselves. 

And, then, this baloney about 1,000 billionaires and how they only pay an 8 percent tax rate. This is based on an unrealized capital gains wealth tax that was never implemented into law. It just does not exist.

Mr. Biden, though, keeps including the unrealized income and applying that to today’s tax rates in order to get to this phony-baloney 8 percent rate. There is no unrealized capital gains wealth tax. And, therefore, no income to be counted. Just a flat-out falsehood.

Now, Mr. Biden’s GDP improvement in the second half of last year is a good thing. And, without stepping on his line too much, to a great extent, the second-half improvement offsets the GDP decline in the first half of 2022.

Now, Mr. Biden is also right to brag on lower inflation. What’s troubling about these GDP reports is that the biggest contributor to growth is government spending.

In fact, in the last two quarters, government spending has grown much faster than any other major category of GDP, including consumer spending. This is unhealthy. And, ultimately, it will prove to be inflationary.

Economist Joe Lavorgna has pointed out that government spending in the last three years under Mr. Biden comes in with a cumulative excess of $3.3 trillion above the long-term trend.

More or less — 7.5 percent spending growth, versus 5.5 percent historical trend-line growth.

The sum-total of federal spending is rising faster than gross domestic product and deficits for last year, fiscal 2023, and for this year, fiscal 2024, are going to keep coming in around $2 trillion.

And big-government spending, which stimulates demand, is not being matched by manufacturing or business equipment growth, which basically has been flat to down for almost two years.

The great French economic philosopher, Jean-Baptiste Say, argued that supply creates its own demand. We must produce in order to consume. 

Bidenomics assumes that consumption stimulated by government will do the job. It won’t. Too much money chasing too few goods causes inflation to go up. That’s the big risk.

I don’t deny Mr. Biden’s mini-boom in recent months, but I do deny that his massive government spending will produce a healthy economy in the long run.

From Mr. Kudlow’s broadcast on Fox Business Network.


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