Biden learns no good deed goes unpunished

It is unfortunate that the American public seems oblivious to the fact that government actions - fiscal or monetary - have long and variable lags between the time an action is taken and when the results manifest in the economy. From a practical point of view, this means the problems of inflation and unemployment trace their root causes back to actions taken eighteen months to two years earlier. Further, actions taken to temper or reverse rising inflation or unemployment typically won't show up in a visible way for eighteen months or more.

This fact makes for some inaccurate perceptions when meshed with the U.S. political calendar. Typically, actions taken by the Federal government or the Federal Reserve in the last two years of an administration's term produce results that show up in the following administration's first couple of years.

A review of the last six years reveals that the effect of the Trump Administration's huge deficits that added $8 trillion to the national debt showed up in the first two years of Biden's administration. The surge in inflation as the Biden administration was taking office was misassigned by the public to Biden, hence his low poll numbers for "handling the economy."

Sadly for Biden, his efforts to rein in inflation while maintaining low unemployment will show up in the first couple of years of the next administration. If Biden wins a second term, he will be seen as a conquering hero who has tamed inflation while avoiding a recession. If he loses, the next administration will get the credit.

In the worst scenario for Biden, he will have gotten the blame for inflation caused by the earlier Trump administration and the credit for his hard work to right our economic ship will go to a different president's administration.

Lynn Jensen

Arlington Heights