President Donald Trump campaigned on reversing the economic damage inflicted under the Biden administration, though many on the left are rushing to blame him for the litany of problems he inherited.
As Trump’s critics, along with at least a few of his supporters, begin to sound the alarms about a possible recession, however, one key Cabinet official is seeking to cool tensions.
During a recent interview, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick offered some reassurance about the health of the economy, as The Hill reported:
“Absolutely not,” Lutnick said when asked whether Americans should brace for a recession.
“Donald Trump is a winner. He’s going to win for the American people. That’s just the way it’s going to be,” Lutnick added.
NBC News’s Kristen Welker noted that consumer sentiment is dropping, inflation has ticked up and major banks, like JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, say a recession in the next 12 months is becoming increasingly likely.
“There’s going to be no recession in America,” Lutnick said.
After months of threats, Trump’s 25 percent tariffs went into effect this week against America’s neighbors to the north, marking a turning point in the relationship between the U.S. and two of its top trading partners.
Fox Business Network host Maria Bartiromo recently made the argument that if an economic downturn is imminent, it would be “Biden’s recession”:
Plenty of others are attempting to defend Trump’s agenda from Democratic Party taking points:
Bartiromo asked Trump about the possibility of a recession during an interview that aired on Sunday:
Time reported on his response:
Consumers and experts alike have shown concern about a possible recession, particularly amid the Trump Administration’s proposed reciprocal tariffs and the mass layoffs largely triggered by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under Elon Musk. The Atlanta Federal Reserve model suggested that economic growth might be negative in Q1 2025.
Trump did not rule out the possibility of economic hardship, arguing that the economy and the U.S. population will have to adjust to the changes being made.
“I hate to predict things like that,” Trump said, when asked if he is expecting a recession this year. “There is a period of transition, because what we’re doing is very big. We’re bringing wealth back to America. There are always periods of… it takes a little time. It takes a little time. But I think it should be great for us.”
Here’s a clip from that Fox News Channel interview:
