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- More than 700 economists from major US institutions have signed an open letter warning against the re-election of President Donald Trump.
- In the letter, they wrote that Trump’s “selfish and reckless behavior” has weakened the economy.
- “He has a poorly-informed, zero-sum view of economics that engenders needless viciousness and cruelty,” the economists wrote.
- They describe Trump’s actions at the White House as a “sustained assault” on democracy.
- Among the economists are seven Nobel Prize winners, including Paul Milgrom, Oliver Hart, and George Akerlof.
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More than 700 economists, including seven Nobel Prize winners, have urged US voters to not re-elect President Donald Trump on Election Day.
The open letter, which is being updated until November 3, has so far been signed by 727 prominent economists from major institutions across America. They include Nobel winners Paul Milgrom, Oliver Hart, and George Akerlof.
“In just one term in office, Donald Trump has rendered the United States unrecognizable, and has faced no consequences for doing so,” the economists wrote.
They wrote that the President has ” weakened the economic recovery with selfish and reckless behavior.”
Amongst many arguments, the economists said Trump has carried out a “sustained assault” on democracy, “normalized corruption”, and spread “dangerous misinformation.”
The letter points out that analysts at Moody's Analytics and Goldman Sachs have concluded that Joe Biden's economic plans would generate faster growth, compared to Trump's.
"He has a poorly-informed, zero-sum view of economics that engenders needless viciousness and cruelty," the economists wrote.
They also slammed his response to the coronavirus, stating: "He undermined mask use and social distancing, held indoor rallies, encouraged the use of unproven and potentially dangerous medical substances, downplayed the severity of the pandemic, and hosted a superspreader event that incapacitated the White House and forced military leadership into quarantine."
The coronavirus pandemic has claimed the lives of more than 223,000 Americans since March.
"For these reasons, we strongly recommend that the electorate do what no one else can: reclaim your democracy by voting to remove Donald Trump from office," the economists wrote.
In response, the Trump campaign said the letter says little about why Joe Biden, the president's opponent, is better suited for the position.
Samantha Zager, the Trump campaign's deputy national press secretary, said, per CNN: "It speaks volumes that in their baseless admonition of President Trump, these left-wing academics couldn't name a single reason why they believe Joe Biden would do anything positive for the American economy."