Republicans Slam Democrat Rep. Haley Stevens for Saying Economy is 'Flourishing'

Jacob BlissDecember 22, 2021

Michigan Republicans hammered vulnerable Democrat Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) after she claimed the United States economy is “flourishing” under President Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr. and is in the best recovery since President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

“We have an economy that is flourishing. We have literally the best economic recovery since FDR,” Stevens was caught saying during a fundraiser call on Zoom last Wednesday. “If you want a job today, you’re going to make more money than you would’ve ever been able to in the last 20 years.”

However, Michigan’s unemployment rate of 5.9 percent–higher than all but eight other states–is over the national average of 4.2 percent, and Stevens’ state has only recovered roughly 74 percent of the jobs lost since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

At the same time, House Democrats and Biden have rammed bills worth trillions of dollars through Congress, such as the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill and the $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act (BBB). The BBB would have ultimately increased taxes on the middle class, expanded and prolonged the effects of inflation, which recently hit the highest levels in nearly 40 years, and added hundreds of billions of dollars to the U.S. deficit.

Michigan Republicans quickly responded to Stevens’ outlandish comments. Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI) told Fox News that Stevens, along with the rest of the Democrats, are living in an “alternate universe,” and the American people are “smart enough to see through this rhetoric and false narrative the Democrats are pushing.”

“I’m not sure what alternate universe the Left is living in, but Americans are struggling now more than ever,” McClain said. “Inflation is the highest it’s been in 39 years at 6.8%, employers are struggling to fill 11 million open jobs, and the supply chain crisis is causing store shelves to remain empty through the holiday season.”

Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, who is originally from Michigan, told Fox News that the “Biden administration and Democrats are touting an economy that is failing every day Americans because of their failed policies.”

“The hallmarks of their failures include a supply chain crisis, skyrocketing prices on everything from gas to groceries, record inflation, and a depleted job market,” the chairwoman added. “As Democrats push for tax cuts for the rich while simultaneously raising taxes on American workers and businesses, Republican leaders will continue to lead the economic recovery with pro-growth and pro-business policies in their states.”

A recent Wall Street Journal poll found that registered voters think Republicans are better equipped than Democrats to rebuild the economy (46 percent to 35 percent) and get inflation under control (44 percent to 26 percent).

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.