As Donald Trump nears the end of his first term as president of the United States, increasing scrutiny is being brought to bear on his economic record. Despite presiding over a strong period of growth and record-breaking stock market highs, Trump now also faces possibly the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression as the US economy falters in response to COVID-19. Here's what you need to know about how Donald Trump's first term has affected the American economy and the US dollar.
Donald on the flashlight
One of the most major changes to economic policy during the presidency of Donald Trump was the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signed into law in 2017. This act reduced America's corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, increased the standard deduction for individuals to $12,000 and created a 20 percent deduction for pass-through income from small businesses, among several other changes to the US tax code. Due in large part to slashed corporate tax rates, the American economy entered a period of faster expansion when the act was passed. Models from before the COVID-19 pandemic projected that the tax cuts enacted under the Trump administration would enhance GDP growth by 2.6 percent over the long run. Positive effects were also seen in both overall employment and wage growth. By 2019, unemployment had dropped to a nearly 50-year low. Wage growth peaked at 3.3 percent in 2018 and fell off slightly to 2.9 percent in 2019. Many Americans have also been able to keep more of their earnings. 64.8 percent of Americans received a tax cut under the terms of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, with only about 6 percent carrying a higher tax liability.
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Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com