Not the Tax-Refund-Scammer-in-Chief:
Following the collapsed December retail sales, Q4 GDP growth is now estimated at a mere 1.5%. The combined impact of the shutdown and the tax refund fraud will put Q1 negative.
"Gross domestic product likely expanded at a 1.5 percent annualized rate in final three months of 2018 based on a 1.2 percent decline in retail sales in December, which was the steepest monthly drop in nine years"
"U.S. retail sales recorded their biggest drop in more than nine years in December as receipts fell across the board, suggesting a sharp slowdown in economic activity at the end of 2018."
The bond market already figured this all out:
The price of being a corrupt idiot is now due:
"Good news, your 2019 tax refund was 2018 GDP. And the best part is, you didn't even know it. We under-withheld your paycheck behind the scenes"
This will be a good test to see how fucking dumb Trump's base really is, as to whether they buy this argument or see that the people advancing it are con artists.
Either way, Q4 GDP will be looking good compared to Q1:
