Comedian Bill Maher acknowledged on a Monday episode of his “Club Random” podcast that he was incorrect in predicting President Donald Trump’s tariffs would destroy the U.S. economy by July.
Although many economists predicted that Trump’s widespread tariffs would cause higher inflation and other negative effects, several economic indicators have shown strength. Maher said on his podcast that he was among those forecasting economic doom that has not materialized thus far, based on the stock market and his own experience.
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“I remember I, along with probably most people, were saying at the beginning, ‘Oh, you know, by the 4th of July’ — somebody had a thing — how the economy was going to be tanked by then,” Maher said. “And I was kind of like, ‘Well, that seems right to me.’ But that didn’t happen. Now, it could happen tomorrow. I’m just saying that’s reality.”
“[T]he truth is, I don’t know what his strategy is. But look, the stock market is at record highs. I know not everybody lives by the stock market, but I also drive around,” he added. “I don’t see a country in a depression at all. I see people out there just living their lives. And I would have thought — and I gotta own it — that these tariffs were going to fucking sink this economy by this time — and they didn’t.”
Along with the strong stock market performance that Maher mentioned, manufacturing output also increased 0.1% in June after an upwardly revised 0.3% increase in May, the Federal Reserve Board reported on July 16. Moreover, U.S. jobless claims for the week ending July 19 sank by 4,000, marking a sixth consecutive week of decline and a three-month low, Reuters reported.
U.S. retail sales growth also rebounded more than anticipated in June, climbing 0.6%, according to advance estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau released July 17.
Furthermore, Trump has announced major trade deals during his second term, including with the European Union, Japan and the Philippines.
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