The Deciders: Even If 3Q GDP Is Revised Up To A White-Hot 5% Growth Rate, We Could Still Be In A Recession, Soon If Not Now

Wow.

On Thursday the eggheads will revise the 3rd quarter GDP snapshot of the country's economic growth. It was preliminarily called at 3.9% -- already a pretty sizzling number -- and may be revised up to 4.5% (smokin' up your kitchen) or even 5% (inferno, grab the cash from the icebox and evacuate the premises).

The Deciders, however, are entirely unimpressed:

In normal times, a U.S. recession would be a distant prospect. The biggest piece of economic data this week is the revision of third-quarter U.S. GDP growth rate, probably to a far-from-recessionary 5%. But these are not normal times.

By "normal times" I'm pretty sure they mean "periods in which a Democratic President is in office."

Newsbusters comments:

If (emphasis "if") Thursday's actual result is 4.9% or higher, it will be the best GDP growth since the third quarter of 2003, and the second-best since the second quarter of 2000.

The second quarter of 2000? Doesn't that mean the GDP growth would be higher than at the end of Clinton's term? And the other big quarter -- the eyepopping 6+% rate in 2003 -- was also not hit during Clinton's presidency.

The economy was strong under Clinton. That is not arguable, except, I guess, by lunatics. But the lunatics in the MSM are determined to pretend that when Bush's presidency consists of quarter after quarter of solid-to-strong growth and low unemployment, we're in a fucking recession, or we are just barely dodging a recession, or we will be in a recession next week.

I don't think they've pined for anything quite as strongly except perhaps the long-anticipated Iraqi Civil War. Their longing for both demonstrates an obsession bordering on the sexual.

posted by Ace at 04:39 PM

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