September 17, 2011
In an article reporting the results of a new public opinion about President Obama and Congress, the NYT told readers:
“Two-thirds of the public say Mr. Obama has not made progress in fixing the economy, even though a majority of people concede the condition of the national economy is not something a president can do a lot about.”
The public can only “concede” that the president cannot do much about the economy if it is in fact true that the president cannot do much about the economy. Of course the mainstream of the economics profession would argue the opposite. For example, through Keynesian stimulus, it is possible to boost growth and create jobs. Alternatively, the decision to make budget cutbacks in a downturn adds to unemployment and slows growth.
By using the term “concede,” the NYT is implying that this view is wrong. It would be interesting to know how it made this determination.
Alternatively, the paper could have simply told readers what its poll findings actually show: most people do not believe that the president can have much impact on the economy.
Comments