The White House claimed that most experts predict solid but
modest growth and not a recession.
"When most experts are still projecting solid growth and a soft landing, a
new president should not be hurting confidence by talking down his economy,"
White House National Economic Adviser Gene Sperling said.
White House officials sent that message Thursday on the heels of a
series of public statements by Bush that the economy might be tanking.
For example, Bush noted that the economy might be headed down during a
press conference in Austin Wednesday when he introduced his treasury
secretary-designate, Alcoa Inc. Chairman Paul O'Neil.
"Our economy is showing warning signs of a possible slowdown," Bush warned
as he introduced O'Neil. Bush said O'Neil had just the skills to guide the
nation through troubled economic waters.
"It is important to be guarded and measured in what you say about the
economy," White House Press Secretary Jake Siewart said Thursday. Siewart
said that most analysts agreed the economy would grow by around 2.5
percent next year and that statements to the contrary could be detrimental.
"It is important for an economic team that is part of the government to be
careful about what they say," Siewart said. "People take these comments very
seriously."
White House officials said privately that Bush was trying to lower expectations
on the economy – just as he did on his performance before the presidential
debates – so that an average economic performance will seem like a win.
Vice President-elect Dick Cheney said the Bush campaign was not making any such statements for political gain.
"We have tried to be very
precise and accurate about our statements," Cheney said after a meeting
Thursday with Connecticut Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman. "We don't want to
talk down the economy, clearly. And I think both President-elect Bush and
myself have tried to be cautious in that regard. But there does seem to be a
lot of evidence out there that the economy is slowing down some," Cheney
noted.
But President Clinton chose Thursday to don rose-colored glasses. At a White
House ceremony where he signed the last budget bill of his
administration, Clinton claimed the economy was strong. "We are now in the
longest economic expansion in our nation's history," Clinton said.
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