During this presidential campaign a major shuttlecock being batted to and fro is the economy. As has been happening for years, the incumbent will take credit when the economy is roaring and outsiders will point condemning fingers at the incumbent when it is whimpering, or sometimes even if it isn’t whimpering.
As I did today and often do before writing, I did some research; economy, inflation, interest rates, consumer prices — none have simple, single-faceted explanations. Few, if any, of those facets, are easily and simply controlled or controllable at all by the incumbent president, now, or during previous administrations. Toss into the mix the Federal Reserve, running pretty much independently, setting interest rates, and Congress tasked to control the federal purse strings.
So if one does their own research, one finds that there are aspects beyond the president’s authority, beyond congressional authority and beyond our borders, all affecting our economy. Consequently, a number of campaign promises may be a bit fictional. The United States economy is a huge ship, and individually, the president, no matter whom, is a tiny rudder.
