The Republican National Convention kicks off Monday, giving party leaders a chance to showcase what they see as the biggest victories of President Donald Trump’s first term.
Those who went on the record took a dim view of the administration’s policies, though the president’s ability to break Washington’s “obsession” with budget deficits was cited as a positive accomplishment.
Both Moody’s Chief Economist Mark Zandi and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz expressed concerns over Trump’s moves toward de-globalization.
Zandi said the U.S. economy will be "diminished" after the coronavirus pandemic and expects policymakers to have trouble trying to “reengage with the rest of the world.”
Stiglitz condemned Trump’s protectionism as "ugliness," citing the ban on exports of medical supplies and hoped that other countries will not reciprocate.
Jim O’Neill, former chief economist at Goldman Sachs, said, "There’s a difference between the rhetoric that comes out of the U.S. president’s mouth and what will happen" when it comes to reducing the trade deficit with China and bringing jobs back to the U.S.
He warned that without a "defined policy" in the U.S. to deliberately rein in deficit spending, the U.S. will not be able to erase its trade deficit with China, which as of July 2020 was more than $130 billion.
