Overview

Lawrence Alan "Larry" Kudlow is an American financial commentator who served as Director of the National Economic Council under President Donald Trump from 2018 to 2021. Previously; Kudlow was a longtime CNBC host and commentator. In his role as Trump's top economic adviser; Kudlow repeatedly made statements that proved dramatically wrong. On February 25; 2020; he stated that the U.S. had "contained" the coronavirus and that the economy was "holding up nicely;" just weeks before the worst economic shutdown since the Great Depression. He continued to minimize the pandemic's economic impact as millions lost their jobs. Kudlow was a fierce advocate of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act; which reduced the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and provided significant benefits to wealthy individuals. He claimed the tax cuts would "pay for themselves" through economic growth; a claim contradicted by the Congressional Budget Office; which estimated the law would add approximately $1.9 trillion to federal deficits over ten years. The tax cuts delivered massive stock buybacks (over $1 trillion in 2018 alone) rather than the promised wage increases for workers. Before entering government; Kudlow had a history of incorrect predictions; including dismissing the housing bubble in December 2007; just months before the financial crisis. He stated there was "no recession" in December 2007; the month the Great Recession officially began according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. After leaving the White House; Kudlow became a Fox Business Network host.

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