Trickle-up Economics. Trump, Growth, and Inequality

26 Pages Posted: 20 Jul 2020

See all articles by Michele Alacevich

Michele Alacevich

University of Bologna - Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche e Sociali; Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET)

Date Written: June 30, 2020

Abstract

During the first three years of the Trump administration, the U.S. economy grew steadily, and the unemployment rate fell to levels unseen since 1969. Donald Trump was swift in crediting the boon to his deregulatory policies, tax cuts, industrial protectionism and trade wars. It should be noted, however, that the economic results of the Trump administration continued in the footsteps of the Obama administration.

The continuity between the Obama and Trump administrations is also visible in the very high levels of inequality. While it’s true that inequality in the age of Trump is not a new phenomenon, the Trump administration took initiatives that have worsened an already dire situation. In particular, the introduction of the Tax Cuts and Job Act in November 2017 and the several attempts at repealing and hindering the functioning of Obamacare, contributed to increasingly skewed income, health, and racial inequality.

The Covid pandemic and the massive sanitary and economic emergency that swept the United States functioned as a stress test for specific policies implemented by the Trump administration. In particular, the pandemic works as a magnifier of many inequalities, especially the racial divide that still haunts the United States.

Keywords: Donald Trump, Inequality, Covid-19, Obamacare, Tax Cuts Act

Suggested Citation

Alacevich, Michele, Trickle-up Economics. Trump, Growth, and Inequality (June 30, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3643410 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3643410

Michele Alacevich (Contact Author)

University of Bologna - Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche e Sociali ( email )

Strada Maggiore 45
Bologna, 40129
Italy

Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) ( email )

300 Park Avenue South, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10010
United States

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