Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross accused the “left-wing media” of attempting to force the economy into a recession in an effort to ruin President Trump’s chances of reelection.
“A lot of the left-wing media are trying very desperately to encourage consumers to trigger a recession,” Ross said in an interview on Fox Business set to air Friday. “I think they realize that’s probably the only way they can hope to beat President Trump in 2020.”
Ross’s comments echo similar accusations Trump has made about a potential economic downturn, concerns over which were sparked in August after the bond market flashed a warning sign about a possible recession.
“You people want a recession because you think maybe that’s the way to get Trump out. Maybe that’s the way we get him out,” the president told reporters in late August at the Group of Seven summit in France.
Trump often touts the health of the economy and low unemployment rate as a major achievement of his presidency, and continued economic growth will be crucial to his reelection bid.
Economic expansion has continued through Trump’s presidency, and the Commerce Department reported Thursday the economy grew at a 2% annualized rate in the second quarter of 2019.
The Trump administration has set a target for annual economic growth of 3%, and in the first three months of the year real gross domestic product increased 3.1%.
