Chris Benson
Wed, October 23, 2024
Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Nearly two dozen winners of the renowned Nobel Prize in economics said Vice President Kamala Harris' economic agenda is "vastly superior" to that of the current Republican presidential nominee.
"Simply put, Harris' policies will result in a stronger economic performance, with economic growth that is more robust, more sustainable, and more equitable," wrote 23 Nobel Prize laureates in an open letter obtained Wednesday.
The list of 23 Nobel recipients represents more than half of the living U.S. holders of the coveted international award.
The Federal Reserve's recent interest rate cut and September's employment data that shows hiring has increased with a dropping rate of unemployment indicates to experts a robust U.S. economy moving in the right direction.
Economists widely view former President Donald Trump's tariff and tax policies as inflationary and will keep expanding the already trillion-dollar federal deficit.
Meanwhile, compared to Trump's policies, Harris would be "a far better steward of our economy," the letter said, although both campaigns have yet to outline specifics. But Trump, they note, "threatens" the rule of law which they added is key to economic success.
Harris has made an "opportunity economy" a centerpiece of her presidential campaign that, among other things, looks at future entrepreneurs to help jumpstart small businesses, cutting inflation, price gouging and first-time homebuyer incentives.
Trump economic policies, the noted economic experts wrote, "including high tariffs even on goods from our friends and allies and regressive tax cuts for corporations and individuals, will lead to higher prices, larger deficits, and greater inequality."
This new letter was led by the noted economist Joseph Stiglitz, a Columbia University professor who won the Nobel Prize in 2001. And it marks the second such letter Stiglitz has spearheaded with other laureates.
In June, 16 Noble Prize-winning economists also wrote that if Trump wins the presidency on Nov. 5., it will "reignite inflation."
At the time, the Trump campaign was dismissive and critical, calling the economic experts "worthless" and "out of touch."
"Harris' economic agenda will improve our nation's health, investment, sustainability, resilience, employment opportunities, and fairness," according to this new letter.
But Wednesday's 228-word letter is shorter, more pointed and included two of the three most recent Nobel recipients, Simon Johnson and Daron Acemoglu of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
"Among the most important determinants of economic success are the rule of law and economic and political certainty, and Trump threatens all of these," the economists wrote.
Nobel laureates endorse Harris economic agenda
Tobias Burns
Wed, October 23, 2024
Winners of the Nobel Prize in economics are backing Vice President Harris’s vision for the economy, calling it “vastly better” to that of former President Trump.
“Harris’s economic agenda will improve our nation’s health, investment, sustainability, resilience, employment opportunities, and fairness,” economic laureates Daron Acemoglu, Esther Duflo, William Nordhaus and 20 others wrote in an open letter.
The economists criticized Trump’s plan for the economy, calling out his plans to greatly increase tariffs, which has been met with staunch resistance from many policy experts in Washington.
“His policies, including high tariffs even on goods from our friends and allies and regressive tax cuts for corporations and individuals, will lead to higher prices, larger deficits, and greater inequality,” they wrote.
Economic agendas from both Harris and Trump have not been fully laid out yet, but they have been given a few defining features.
Harris wants to go after price gouging, help aspiring entrepreneurs start small businesses and provide incentives for first-time homebuyers, among other proposals.
Trump is promising to alter the U.S. revenue structure by imposing a general tariff on imported goods. He has also pledged a number of new tax breaks.
Trump’s plans would add significantly more to the U.S. deficit than Harris’s, according to various budgetary summaries and analyses.
U.S. debt levels ballooned following the pandemic, as the government under both the Trump and Biden administrations sent out trillions in fiscal stimulus, both to individuals and businesses.
That stimulus contributed to the inflation that weighed on President Biden’s economic approval ratings throughout his term. As supply chains returned to normal and the stimulus was absorbed into the economy, prices have since fallen back down toward a 2-percent annual increase.
A monetary tightening cycle undertaken by the Federal Reserve helped to keep inflation expectations anchored.
The fact that inflation has come down without a recession has been hailed by economists as a serious achievement and could be a hallmark of the Biden administration’s legacy.
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