President Trump readies task force focused on reviving the economy
Reaction and analysis from Peter Morici, University of Maryland business professor and former chief economist for the U.S. International Trade Commission.
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Former U.S. International Trade Commission Chief Economist Peter Morici reacted on Sunday to President Trump’s announcement on Friday that he will be assembling a second task force to reopen the economy saying, “it is extraordinarily important.”
Morici explained on “Fox & Friends Weekend” that a second task force is important because “we’re going to open the economy in phases, consistent with public health requirements and our capacity to test and so forth and the economy is going to fundamentally change from before. “
“It’s not going to be the same and it’s going to require a lot of support, but we have to do it in a careful way to provide the right incentives,” he said.
He explained that having “a task force that understands the financial system that understands the real economy … that understands the political system” is key.
During a news briefing on Friday Trump said, “We do want to get the country open. It’s so important. So I’ll have a task force. I’ll have a council. It’s going to be announced on Tuesday with names that you have a lot of respect for, a lot of great names, different businesses, different people, bipartisan.”
Morici said he xpects White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow will be on that task force.
“They really fill out those requirements very well,” he said.
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“This is going to be like the war production board in a way from World War II, but we can be pretty confident that along with the right business leaders this should work out pretty well,” Morici continued.
When asked who else he would like to see on the task force, Morici said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the governor of the hardest hit state in the country, Apple CEO Tim Cook and the CEO of General Motors would be good ideas.
“People that understand the real economy, technology, the machinations of integrating the local public sector with the economy so that supply chains move,” he explained.
On Saturday President Trump said on “Justice with Judge Jeanine,” that he thinks that there will be a “tremendous surge” in the U.S. economy given "the stimulus, coupled with this pent-up demand and everybody wanting to get out and go back to work.”
“I think it’s going to be like a rocket ship. I really believe that,” Trump said.
When asked on Easter Sunday if he thinks the U.S. economy will take off like a “rocket ship,” Morici said, “I think that on this day of hope we should also display some confidence.”
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“America is really at its best when it faces big challenges,” he continued. “When it faces big challenges it does big things and lifting a $22 trillion economy off the mat again is really a herculean task, but I think we can be confident that America’s private sector, the best minds in government, good will, a bipartisan effort will get us there.”
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