During the course of the 2016 presidential election campaign, Donald Trump has claimed to be an excellent businessman, with the knowledge and experience to create millions of new jobs and greatly improve the U.S. economy.

The truth is that Mr. Trump has been a very poor businessman, who has relied on a series of financial bailouts, first from his father and then from the U.S. bankruptcy laws, to keep his business afloat. Along the way he has refused to pay contractors, stiffed people and organizations that loaned him money, and used a series of tax loopholes to avoid paying any federal income tax for almost 20 years.

The proposals that Donald Trump has put forward to “make our economy great again” have received negative evaluations from many knowledgeable economists.

Experts at the Wharton School of Business have stated that Trump’s proposals would cost the United States 4 million jobs. Oxford University economists estimated that Trump’s plans would lead to the loss of a trillion dollars. The chief U.S. economist at HSBC bank, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, and the chief economist at Citi, all have agreed that the implementation of Trump’s economic and trade policies would put the U.S. economy into a recession.

In contrast to Trump’s disastrous policies, Hillary Clinton’s economic proposals have been positively evaluated by many experts. Moody’s Analytics chief economist has estimated that Clinton’s economic plans would lead to the creation of 10 million jobs during her first term in office. The Tax Policy Center has projected that the Clinton plan would increase federal revenues by $1.1 trillion over ten years, which would reduce federal deficits and slow the accumulation of federal debt. The Philadelphia Inquirer characterized Clinton’s plan as “fiscally responsible and debt neutral”.

Hillary Clinton’s economic policies are clearly superior to those of Donald Trump. One more reason to vote for her on Nov. 8.

 

Larry Feldman

Lakeside