Free Republic

President Donald Trump shared on Wednesday that he wants the debt limit “scrapped,” which Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has also called for. Trump issued a statement on Truth Social Wednesday afternoon. “I am very pleased to announce that, after all of these years, I agree with Senator Elizabeth Warren on SOMETHING. The Debt Limit should be entirely scrapped to prevent an Economic catastrophe,” he wrote. “It is too devastating to be put in the hands of political people that may want to use it despite the horrendous effect it could have on our Country and, indirectly, even the World,” he...

In a wide-ranging and unapologetically pro-growth address Monday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out the Trump administration’s economic vision for the next four years, calling on global investors to align with what he described as a “new Golden Age” for American enterprise. Speaking before an audience of business leaders, financiers, and policymakers at the Milken Institute’s annual Global Conference, Bessent delivered what amounted to a comprehensive blueprint for the administration’s domestic agenda—one built around three interlocking pillars: strategic tariffs, aggressive tax incentives, and sweeping deregulation. “Our goal is not simply to grow the economy,” Bessent said. “It’s to re-anchor global...

A top economic adviser to President Trump confidently predicted Monday the US would not experience a recession this year — despite widespread uncertainty over the administration’s tariff regime. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told Fox Business Network “100% not, 100% not” when asked by host Maria Bartiromo about the possibility of a sustained downturn. “If you look at the jobs numbers, they’re very, very strong,” Hassett explained. “When I talk anecdotally to CEOs, I say things like, ‘Well, jeez, is the uncertainty over tariffs looking like it’s gonna be a big drag?’ And they’re saying things like, ‘No, in...

Well, isn’t this fun? News that President Trump had decided to pause some of the tariffs that he recently unveiled for 90 days sent stock prices soaring. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up more than 2,900 points on Wednesday, and that is very good news. But not that much has actually changed, and the global trade war is still officially on. In fact, President Trump just hiked the tariff rate on Chinese imports to 125 percent… President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he was authorizing a 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs to all countries except China, on which he...

Billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman, a staunch President Trump ally, has warned the world is on the brink of a “self-induced economic nuclear winter” – as he begged the commander in chief to pause his sweeping tariffs. “The President has an opportunity on Monday to call a time out and have the time to execute on fixing an unfair tariff system. Alternatively, we are heading for a self-induced, economic nuclear winter, and we should start hunkering down,” Ackman wrote in a lengthy X post Sunday night. “May cooler heads prevail.” Ackman, who endorsed Trump’s run for President, issued the stark...

President Donald Trump said that the United States is in the midst of an “economic revolution” and urged Americans to “hang tough” for a “historic” result. Trump’s comments came in a Truth Social post on Saturday, just days after he announced his worldwide reciprocal tariffs aimed at offsetting trade imbalances the United States has with other nations. “China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close. They, and many other nations, have treated us unsustainably badly. We have been the dumb and helpless ‘whipping post,’ but not any longer,” Trump wrote. Notable tariffs Trump announced on Wednesday...

The globalist World Economic Forum (WEF) founder Klaus Schwab has begun to “start the process” of stepping down as chair of its board of trustees, the Geneva-based institution confirmed Thursday. The German academic said the forum, which convenes its annual gathering of world elites at the Swiss resort of Davos, must recover its “sense of mission” after a period of turmoil. The Financial Times first reported Schwab’s departure, citing a letter to trustee board members and confirmation by two people with knowledge of the situation. The missive reportedly said in part: I am deeply convinced that in today’s special context...

Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) said Tuesday on CNN’s “News Central” that President Donald Trump’s tariffs “could have catastrophic economic consequences for our country.” Co-host John Berman said, “Do you know what tariffs the president is going to announce tomorrow? And do you think the president knows what new tariffs he’s going to announce tomorrow?” Markey said, “I think the president is making it up as he’s going along. I don’t think he knows. But when he calls it ‘Liberation Day,’ it could be Obliteration Day if he doesn’t act in a way that invokes the law of unintended consequences. So,...

During portions of an interview with NPR aired on Monday’s broadcast of “All Things Considered,” Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) declared that Democrats “better shape up and put together a plan for progress, starting in the places that have fallen behind where people are voting for change simply because the economy is not working for them.” And that those voters voted for Donald Trump because they knew where they live isn’t great. Kaptur said, “They heard President Trump say, Make America Great Again. That was something they want to do, and they know where they live isn’t. They’ve seen factories close....

The Federal Reserve held interbank lending rates steady on Wednesday at a range of 4.25 to 4.5 percent despite some signs that the economy may be heading for a slowdown. The decision to keep rates where they are was in line with market expectations. The CME FedWatch prediction algorithm based on futures contract prices registered Wednesday a 99 percent probability that the Fed would hold rates steady. The Fed has paused rate cuts for the second straight meeting since January. The central bank cut rates three times during the end of 2024 in response to weakening employment data and easing...

If the aftermath of Donald Trump’s victory on Election Day feels joyous and tranquil, you are not alone. American households and businesses are much more serene and hopeful this time around. Polling released by Pew Research on Friday shows that 70 percent of Americans are very or somewhat confident that the transition to the Trump administration will go smoothly. Similarly, a majority of Americans say they have a positive evaluation of Trump’s post-election conduct. A 53 percent majority of Americans say they approve of the president-elect’s plans for the country. When asked if they approve of Trump’s conduct post-election, 53...

The Ford Motor Co. will reduce its workforce by upwards of 4,000 across Europe and the U.K. by the end of 2027, the manufacturer announced Wednesday, citing headwinds generated from the economy, pressure from increased competition and weaker than expected sales of electric vehicles (EVs) for the dim forecast. Most of the job cuts would come in Germany and would be carried out in consultation with employee representatives, AP reports. The company also plans to reduce working time for workers at its Cologne, Germany plant where it makes the Capri and Explorer electric vehicles.

Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist, has claimed without evidence that official economic statistics under the incoming Trump administration will be manipulated. In a recent interview with the New Republic, Krugman said that under the incoming Trump administration, government economic data would be distorted to flatter the president’s policies. “My guess is by sometime next year, we’re going to be having to look at proxies for what’s actually happening to the economy,” Krugman said, warning that official statistics on issues like the economy and crime could become “corrupted.”

Governor Chris Sununu (R-NH) said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” that Vice President Kamala Harris’s message on the economy was “condescending” and “gaslighting.” Host Martha Raddatz said, “He’s proposed 60% tariffs on China and this week suggested as high as 50% across-the-board tariffs on all other countries. Economists predict that would cause inflation to spike again. How are those good for Americans?” Sununu said, “Look, the tariff issues are complex. There’s no question about it. I don’t love every tariff proposal he’s put forward, but when it comes to the voter, where this election’s going, no voter is voting on...

Former President Donald Trump holds an edge over Vice President Kamala Harris on several economic issues, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The survey, conducted as the 2024 presidential election approaches, shows Trump leading Harris on handling matters such as the stock market, the job market, cost of living, and overall economic management. Among registered voters, Trump holds a 15-point advantage on managing the U.S. stock market and a nine-point lead on both improving Americans’ financial well-being and overseeing the broader U.S. economy. The poll also shows voters favoring Trump by seven points on handling the job market and by...

Vice President Kamala Harris gave her first solo interview Wednesday on cable news as the Democratic Party’s nominee for president, and failed to answer questions even in a friendly interview by MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle. Ruhle — who faced criticism for comments Friday in which she had defended Ruhle from having to face questions about her policies — asked Harris pointed questions and even fact-checked some of her repeated talking points. When Harris tried to claim, falsely — as she has in the past — that “Donald Trump left us with the worst economy since the Great Depression” (it was, in...

Vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) said Thursday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that Vice President Kamala Harris’s main thrust of her economic policy is to “throw everybody on welfare.” Co-host Joe Kernen said, “Given that as we now know, people’s economic beliefs can evolve, as we’ve seen maybe from, you know, former President Trump’s opponent, but I’m wondering whether yours have evolved? Because then we’ll get into some of the things you said in the part and how much daylight right now is there between what you believe and what would I call you an economic populist? Is there...

When U.S. consumers are doing well, the U.S. economy does well. But of course the opposite is also true. When U.S. consumers are not doing well, the U.S. economy really suffers. The government has been trying really hard to put a happy face on things, but the truth is that the standard of living for most U.S. consumers has been going down for a long time. The cost of living has been rising faster than paychecks have, and so most of us have less discretionary income than we once did. And that is really bad news for the U.S. economy,...

CHICAGO — This week, workers began tearing down the vacant Sears world headquarters in Hoffman Estates before the site is turned into a data center, a trend that has grown popular in the suburbs and now, a Chicago alderman wants to bring more of them into the city. That alderman is the 36th Ward’s Gilbert Villegas, who is advocating for a plan at City Council to convert vacant Chicago land into data centers. At a cost of millions annually, city government stores its data at centers locate outside of Chicago. Villegas, chairman of the Council Technology Committee, has written an...

On Wednesday’s broadcast of “CNN News Central,” Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said that 2024 Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris hasn’t implemented the economic proposals she’s promising now because “she’s been the Vice President and she’s been supporting a president who’s had 15 million jobs created under his presidency, more than any president in my lifetime, but that doesn’t mean that gas and groceries are as affordable as they need to be, and that doesn’t mean enough people who work hard have a home.” Co-host John Berman asked, “Congressman, what you hear from Republicans, though, is, look, if...