By Congressman Tom Cole
When the American people elected President Trump and a Republican majority, they expected big things in 2017. This past year brought with it several positive changes because the Trump administration and Congress have been focused on the American people’s priorities. One of the biggest accomplishments was the first major tax reform in more than three decades. And that’s just in year one. The American economy has grown tremendously since the beginnings of President Trump’s first days in office, and the growth trend seems likely to continue into 2018.
In the early days of his Presidency, President Trump announced his intention to bring American companies back to the United States. And many followed suit. From the auto industry to the technology sector, the commitment to returning to American soil is set to bring thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in investments into the economy. What that commitment also brought was confidence for investors in the stock market. There were countless times in 2017 that the stock market reached and closed on new record numbers. In fact, 2017 was one of the best years for the stock market since 2013. All the major stock indexes rose to never before seen record numbers in 2017, thanks to this administration’s focus on deregulation and tax cuts for all Americans.
During the Obama Administration, the U.S. economy was stifled by the bureaucratic practices and red-tape burdens created by an overactive federal bureaucracy. Hundreds of rules and regulations from the previous Administration did not protect consumers and the work-force as it intended. Instead, overregulation took away thousands of job opportunities, crippled small businesses and killed American ingenuity. Under the Trump Administration and Republican Congress, deregulation has been a major success. So far, dozens of regulations have been eliminated and more are certain to come. Regulatory relief not only saves the government billions of dollars, it enables major businesses, corporations and workers to grow and thrive in a competitive market.
In addition to milestones in the stock market, the U.S. unemployment rate has remained exceptionally low. Last month, the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, the lowest it has been in 17 years. And overall, the U.S. economy added more than two million jobs last year. These kind of numbers and positive assertions of job growth have not been seen since the 1990s.
Much of these recent economic boosts can be attributed to the passage of the tax reform bill, which is certain to bring increased investments into the American economy, hundreds of thousands of new jobs and major, large tax cuts for the American taxpayer across the tax code spectrum. Almost immediately after passage, many companies and corporations pledged to invest billions to the U.S. economy after receiving a large corporate tax cut. In turn, large investments will support job creation and encourage consumer spending. Furthermore, numerous corporations committed to give employees substantial year-end bonuses or increase hourly wages. All of these factors help the U.S. economy in the long run and contribute to robust economic growth.
A healthy economy leads to confidence in both investors and consumers. I am optimistic that 2018 will bring continued growth and economic opportunities. From our small businesses, large corporations and the American workforce, the economy is poised to continue bearing fruit for all those seeking financial stability. This is just the beginning of what seems to be a promising future for the American economy.
