Speaking to a crowd in North Carolina, Obama claimed Trump “inherited” a strong economy that he built, dismissing Trump’s impact as merely passing tax cuts for the wealthy. “Yeah, it was good because it was my economy I gave to him,” Obama said, aiming to downplay Trump’s achievements. “I spent eight years building it. All he did was give a tax cut to people who didn’t need it.”
These comments come as the Biden regime’s economic struggles have become clear to Americans who are dealing with high inflation, stagnant wages, and rising costs of living. Many remember the sharp contrast in economic stability under Trump, marked by a historic unemployment rate and a significant uptick in GDP growth.
Despite Obama’s claims, critics argue that Trump’s policies—including his 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which lowered the corporate tax rate and allowed middle-class Americans to keep more of their income—spurred an economic surge that was not seen in years.
Conservatives quickly countered Obama’s narrative, pointing out that his administration’s policies stifled growth and increased regulation, which Trump reversed. Mark Spencer, a conservative economic analyst, said, “The data speaks for itself. After the tax cuts, we saw an explosion in business investment, job creation, and wage growth.
Obama’s big-government approach stalled our economy, while Trump’s America-first policies jump-started it.” Indeed, economic growth averaged 2.5% in Trump’s first three years, compared to around 2.2% in Obama’s final years, suggesting Trump’s policies were more effective at encouraging economic expansion.
In his remarks, Obama criticized Trump’s tax cuts as “giveaways to people who didn’t need it.” However, his portrayal of Trump’s policies ignores how middle-class Americans saw more take-home pay and businesses reinvested into expanding job opportunities. Obama and many on the left have dismissed these tax cuts as only benefiting the wealthy; data shows that companies invested heavily into employee salaries, bonuses, and new hiring following the tax cuts.
The former president also sought to downplay Trump’s direct stimulus checks during the pandemic, suggesting that the idea wasn’t original to Trump. Obama stated, “We gave relief during the Great Recession too; we just didn’t put our names on it. It wasn’t about ego, it was about people.”
Many Trump supporters, however, argue that Trump’s direct relief approach during the pandemic—tied to his America-first stance—was impactful and well-received. This pledge differs from the lengthy bureaucratic measures often associated with the Obama administration’s relief efforts.
Obama affirmed the economic struggles under the Biden-Harris regime, with inflation and rising costs burdening working families. “Prices are still too high for many people,” he admitted, but his comments may do little to appease Americans who recall a stronger economy during Trump’s presidency.
The contrast is striking: under Trump, Americans experienced a surge in job opportunities and higher wages, while the current Biden administration has struggled to manage inflation and deliver the same level of economic stability.
Susan Blanchard, a North Carolina resident and longtime Obama supporter, admitted that Obama’s remarks on inflation resonated with her but noted, “What he’s not saying is that we were better off economically under Trump. It’s one thing to address high prices, but another to solve the problem.” For voters in North Carolina—a state Trump carried in 2020—this economic contrast remains fresh, and many recall Trump’s tenure as a time of relative prosperity.
Polls show Trump leading Kamala Harris in North Carolina, with the RealClearPolitics average placing him ahead—a promising sign as he campaigns to retake the White House in 2024. Obama’s endorsement of Harris may rally some Democrats, but it faces resistance from an American electorate skeptical of the Biden administration’s handling of the economy. Comrade Harris and Biden rely heavily on Obama’s popularity, but for many, the economic realities under this administration may outweigh any rhetoric from high-profile endorsements.