Goldman Sachs CEO Speaks After Harris Touts the Bank’s Analysis of Her Economic Policy
In the context of a recent presidential debate, Vice President Kamala Harris promoted her economic policies, citing favorable projections from Goldman Sachs. She claimed that her plan would strengthen the economy compared to Donald Trump’s, which she argued would primarily benefit the wealthy. However, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon later clarified that Harris misrepresented their report, which showed only a minimal difference—approximately two-tenths of one percent—in GDP growth between the two plans. Solomon emphasized that the analysis was based on hypothetical policies that may not be implemented. Moreover, he noted that both plans were fundamentally similar in terms of projected economic impact. The discourse highlights potential misalignment between political rhetoric and economic realities, casting doubt on the long-term efficacy of the current administration’s policies as perceived by the public. The article ultimately critiques Harris’ claims and emphasizes skepticism about the administration’s handling of the economy, particularly concerning rising costs faced by everyday Americans.
Remember those rosy Wall Street projections of the Democrats’ economic policies that Vice President Kamala Harris touted during last week’s presidential debate? One of the CEOs of one of the Wall Street firms whose report she hyped is telling the veep to hold her horses.
You may have perhaps remembered the moment — the moment when the notoriously plan-less, policy-challenged Harris declared that on the economy, “Donald Trump has no plan for you.”
“When you look at his economic plan, it’s all about tax breaks for the richest people. I am offering what I describe as an opportunity economy, and the best economists in our country, if not the world, have reviewed our relative plans for the future of America,” she said, as per an ABC News transcript.
Harris added, in a widely circulated talking point: “What Goldman Sachs has said is that Donald Trump’s plan would make the economy worse. Mine would strengthen the economy.”
Speaking to CNBC Wednesday, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said that Harris misrepresented the magnitude of the report in her remarks.
“So, that report, which was mentioned last night in the debate, came from an independent analyst, and it’s interesting, Scott, I think a lot more has been made of this than should be,” he told host Scott Wapner, according to Fox Business.
“What the report did is it looked at a handful of policy issues that have been put out by both sides, and it tried to model their impact on GDP growth,” Solomon continued.
“The reason I say a bigger deal has been made of it is what it showed is the difference between the sets of policies that they’ve put forward is about two-tenths of one percent.”
“So, the economy grows, if you took these particular sets of policies they looked at — and by the way, we have no idea whether these policies, these things that are talked about, will ultimately be implemented — and what was the growth impact?” he added.
Soloman noted: “And the differential was two-tenths of one percent.”
And pulled quotes from the estimates reported by Reuters seemed to confirm that the analyst’s report seemed to lean toward both plans, such as they are, being six of one, half dozen of the other.
“We estimate that if Trump wins in a sweep or with divided government, the hit to growth from tariffs and tighter immigration policy would outweigh the positive fiscal impulse, resulting in a peak hit to GDP growth of -0.5pp in 2025H2 that abates in 2026,” it read.
“If Democrats sweep, new spending and expanded middle-income tax credits would slightly more than offset lower investment due to higher corporate tax rates, resulting in a very slight boost to GDP investment due to higher corporate tax rates, resulting in a very slight boost to GDP growth on average over 2025-2026.”
It’s worth noting again, however, that this is counting on an effect Harris likened to a “Trump sales tax” from higher tariffs.
Yet, as Trump noted in his rebuttal of that point, for an administration that is now crowing about the damage his tariffs would do to the economy, the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris White House has been more than happy to leave those tariffs in place.
“I took in billions and billions of dollars, as you know, from China. In fact, they never took the tariff off because it was so much money, they can’t,” Trump said during the debate. “It would totally destroy everything that they’ve set out to do.
“They’ve taken in billions of dollars from China and other places. They’ve left the tariffs on. When I had it, I had tariffs and yet I had no inflation.”
And so, yet again, another Harris talking point is reduced to a great big nothing. She promised America that Wall Street was on her side — which, quite frankly, is an odd brag for a Democrat to make, but so is getting an endorsement from Dick Cheney, and here we are.
Unlike former Vice President Cheney, however, Wall Street isn’t willing to play along with Harris’ numerical prestidigitations. Even if her adumbrated economic plans, which have a troubled avenue to enactment even in their vaguest forms, manage to make it into law, Goldman Sachs still doesn’t think the difference is anything like she’s saying.
And, as for her administration’s record … have you looked at your bank account or your grocery bill lately? Tried to price a car or a house?
Nice try, Kamala.
However, America is all too familiar with the “Biden-Harris sales tax,” so to speak, and you’ve given us no palpable evidence four more years of it won’t be just as brutal, especially compared with your administration’s predecessor.
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