Harris Falsely Claims The Economy Needed To Be Rescued When She Took Office
SUMMARY
Fact Check Summary: Vice President Kamala Harris recently claimed that the American economy was in dire condition when she and President Biden took office, attributing this to mismanagement by former President Donald Trump. However, this statement is misleading. Economic data from the U.S. Department of Commerce shows that the economy was actually on a strong recovery path before Harris and Biden took office. In the third quarter of 2020, the economy grew at an annual rate of 34.8%, followed by 4.2% growth in the fourth quarter. By the first quarter of 2021, the growth rate was 5.2%. Additionally, the unemployment rate had dropped significantly from a peak of 14.8% in April 2020 to 6.4% by January 2021. These figures indicate that the economy was already recovering, contradicting Harris's assertion that it needed rescuing.
