Fox News Anchor Gets Fact-Checked by Economist On-Air: 'Check the Numbers'

[catbyte]

“We saw significantly slower job growth than the last three years of the Obama administration,” economist Austan Goolsbee told Fox's Sandra Smith.

Justin Baragona, Contributing Editor
Published Aug. 25, 2020 11:50AM ET

Fox News anchor Sandra Smith on Tuesday apparently thought she had Austan Goolsbee dead-to-rights on the economic growth claims he made on-air, only for the economist to retort with a fact-check, telling her to “check the numbers.”

Goolsbee, a former economic adviser to President Barack Obama, was brought on to discuss Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s latest tax plan, which features the ex-veep proposing tax hikes on wealthy individuals and businesses.

The interview soon devolved into a contentious debate about the economic benefits of President Donald Trump’s corporate tax cuts, prompting Goolsbee to note that many of the president’s promises of wage and economic growth never came to fruition, even before the coronavirus pandemic.

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“I say we did not see an increase in growth before COVID,” Goolsbee explained. “There was no massive increase in investment as was promised. There was no $4,000 increase in the average worker’s wages, as was promised. What you saw was a massive windfall hand-out. It increased share repurchases and large dividend payouts.”

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https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-anchor-gets-fact-checked-by-economist-austan-goolsbee-on-air-telling-her-to-check-the-numbers

[rainin]

1. Apparently she's believing her own propaganda. Some facts are provable

Those shouldn't be "debatable" as she puts it

[SunSeeker]

2. Austan Goolsbee knows his shit. He is an economics nerd's superhero.

[NCjack]

5. Knows how to give a spanking.

[jayfish]

3. Jeebus! What an Idiot!

She won't be checking the numbers any time soon. I promise.

[Cicada]

4. Goolsbee won natl debate contest in high school and college

In 1990 in college his duo came in second nationally. The next year his duo defeated Ted Cruz for first place. After Goolsbee graduated Cruz then won first place. Goolsbee is an extremely brilliant debater. I saw him with Hannity once. After Hannity gave a reply, Goolsbee just added the killer fact destroying Hannity’s point but then used this sentence. I forget the specifics. Goolsbee said X, his killer fact, but he said it like this. Ok X but your point is Y, repeating Hannity’s point, adding ok if you want to believe that, you can. He didnt say Hannity was wrong. Just the opposite. In fact he said ok, repeating Hannity’s point for him. But it was obviously not tenable after X. If Goolsbee had just denied Hannity Hannity fans would have simply rejected him. But by repeating Hannity’s argument for him but in a context where it obviously could not be true he allowed Hannity’s fans to see the flaw for themselves. Hannity paused for a couple seconds, realized what had happened, smiled and ended by just saying “you’re good. You’re really really good.” End of segment. Goolsbee is the best spokesman for democrats on economics on planet earth. He is transcendently persuasive. And he does it by pretending to accept your own arguments.

[EarnestPutz]

6. I'd love to see that exchange and will try to find it. Love it when Hannity get pwned.

[Cicada]

8. It concerned whether gdp declines in 2009 were Obama's fault

Hannity had cited growth during Obama’s first term being sluggish and Goolsbee pointed out growth after the recession bottomed out. Goolsbee said something like ok you think the early declines weren’t due to what happened before Obama took office, ok maybes that’s true, maybe you’re right. when no one on earth would believe it was true. Something like that.

[iluvtennis]

7. .."Goolsbee noted that many of the president's promises of wage and economic growth never came to

fruition, even before the coronavirus pandemic."

Now, that's the truth. Like Ali Vleshi said last week, "the stock market is not the economy". Stock market advanced under trump, but not the overall economy.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213951209