Remarks
Pessimism About America's Growth Potential May Be Overdone
The Congressional Budget Office has steadily lowered estimates for potential gross domestic product.
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If this chart had tear ducts it might be crying from disappointment. It shows the steady lowering of expectations for the U.S. economy over the past 15 years. It’s worth a bit of study because it encapsulates what went wrong. It also contains a small hint of possibly better times ahead.
Look first at the black line, which dates to a more optimistic era. It’s the projection the Congressional Budget Office made in 2006 for potential gross domestic product from then through 2016.