Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 28, 2019

ECONOMIC GROWTH HAS REACHED 3 PERCENT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MORE THAN A DECADE THANKS TO PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP’S POLICIES   “We’ve accomplished an economic turnaround of historic proportions.” – President Donald J. Trump   ACHIEVING 3 PERCENT GROWTH: For the first time in 13 years, the economy reached 3 percent growth in 2018. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) has announced that GDP grew by 3.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2017 to the fourth quarter of 2018. Bureau of Economic Analysis:  “During 2018 (measured from the fourth quarter of 2017 to the fourth quarter of 2018), real GDP increased 3.1 percent.”   This marked the fastest fourth quarter to fourth quarter growth since 2005.   2018 was the second year in a row that the economy exceeded market expectations. The impressive economic growth in 2018 was a strong improvement from the trend prior to when President Donald J. Trump took office. Had the pre-2017 trend continued, growth would have been only 2 percent in 2017 and 2018.  Economic output was also $280 billion larger than it would have been.  Growth matched the forecast of 3.1 percent predicted in the President’s 2018 Budget.     The fourth quarter GDP growth last year far exceeded market expectations.  THE ECONOMIC BOOM CONTINUES: Last year’s impressive GDP growth continues the incredible economic success the country is experiencing under President Trump.  President Trump’s policies of tax cuts, deregulation, and trade reform have generated a booming economy.    So far, more than 5.3 million jobs have been created since President Trump’s election.   The unemployment rate has remained at or below 4 percent for the past 11 months.  September 2018 and November 2018 saw unemployment rates of 3.7 percent – the lowest rate in nearly 50 years. The number of job openings for American workers reached a record high 7.3 million in December of last year. The economy continues to exceed expectations across the board. Job growth in January was more than 300,000 – far exceeding expectations. Unemployment stands at 4 percent – the Congressional Budget Office predicted in January 2017 that it would be 4.4 percent this quarter. DEFYING DOUBTS: President Trump’s policies have achieved economic growth that critics continually denied would happen. Critics (especially from the previous administration) repeatedly denied that the President’s policies would lead to this kind of economic growth. Larry Summers, President Obama’s National Economic Council Director, dismissed the prediction that President Trump’s policies would lead to 3 percent growth. Summers wrote in 2017: “Apparently, the budget forecasts that U.S. economic growth will rise to 3.0 percent because of the administration’s policies — largely its tax cuts and perhaps also its regulatory policies. Fair enough if you believe in tooth fairies and ludicrous supply-side economics.”  This criticism is especially outrageous considering the previous administration never reached growth this high during the four quarters of any calendar year.