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Kevin Hassett, the cheerful chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, had a story to tell after being invited by White House press secretary Sarah Sanders to explain "the series of US economic victories." He surpassed growth and employment numbers to cite a dramatic Trump boom, welcoming investment, business optimism, capital goods shipments and the Purchasing Index.
"Sarah can tell you that I push her to let me show these slides for a while," he beamed.
History suggests that such good news should translate into a series of political and economic victories for the GOP leading to boring mid-term elections and even an election for a carefree re-election of President Donald Trump himself.
Yet something is not quite enough.
The President has no doubt that he can withstand the bad omens.
"The economy is so good, maybe the best in our country's history (remember it's the stupid economy!), Democrats beat and lie like crazy!" articles endure-and they lose big, "Trump tweeted Monday.
It would be one thing if the economy was talking about everything the president was talking about. But the constant whirlwind of disorder that he overflows often covers his arguments about jobs and growth, as it became clear as soon as Sanders took over from Hassett. Normality has evaporated and the acrimony and strangeness of the daily Trump administration have taken over.
The question of the character
The questions highlighted how the crisis in the White House, most of which can be directly related to Trump, has led to a crisis of confidence and authority in the administration and stifles the GOP's attempts to highlight tax cuts and deregulation. strength.
Even holding a briefing seemed to be an attempt to emphasize the normality after a week of claims for administrative dysfunction – although this forced the White House assistants to erase the podium .
In the longer term, Sanders' fury has highlighted one of the central themes of the mid-term campaign so far: that the buzzing economy should have put Trump in a much better position than he has. is actually. There is also the related unknown of whether its bursts and its erratic nature scare away some voters who would otherwise be inclined to give it the benefit of the doubt if they feel good in the economy .
"What's true is that it's been the highest for 10 years." And at one point, someone probably transmitted it, adding a zero to that, and they should not have done it, "said Hassett.
The tweet might seem like a small thing – given the blizzard of incorrect claims made by Trump. But he plays directly into one of his biggest vulnerabilities, the character issues that are exacerbated by the constant collapses of the White House.
"It tells the story" are you honest and trustworthy "and not" how is the economy part of it "… We know that this is not the terrain on which you want to be, "said Kristen Soltis Anderson, Republican. pollster and columnist of the Washington Examiner on CNN.
"By evoking a fact that is not a fact, it removes its economic message."
subsidence
It is clear that Trump still does not get full credit for healthy jobs and economic growth figures. The survey shows that 69% of voters describe the country's economy as good. But only 49% of those surveyed approve of how Trump manages the economy.
Inside Trump's wider approval decline, its rating among independents has dropped from 47% to 31% since August, the kind of figure that could cause serious damage when voters surrender at the polls.
The president also deals with heavy water in other areas of performance.
Only 32% think Trump is honest and trustworthy, a similar proportion of voters are proud to have him as president and only 30% think he will unite the country.
The decline in Trump's approval rate in the CNN poll is reflected in other recent opinion polls and should therefore be worrying Republicans who are hoping the strong economy will stop a charge. Democrat in November.
This is because the data show that a president's approval rate drops generally respond to a decline in the national vote for his party in the House of Representatives.
Trump's best hope of avoiding a nightmare scenario of a Democratic House that could paralyze his administration could be a broader national appreciation of his economic leadership and an exceptional participation from his loyal grassroots base.
But at present, this type of success seems to be overshadowed by the president's inability to make the economy the dominant theme of his chaotic administration.
If he's going to confuse the story in November, it will have to change. Hassett's upbeat messaging is a good place to start.
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