HANNITY CROWING AGAIN

This time about the GDP growing by 0.6% in the 1st quarter of 2008. In his mind, that means we can't use the word "recession" and for the GOP, that's politically good news. In the real world, things are much different, as Rex Nutting points out.

U.S. could have recession without drop in GDP
Analysis: Growth isn't everything; jobs and incomes count more
By Rex Nutting, MarketWatch
Last update: 8:50 a.m. EDT April 30, 2008

(excerpts)

It turns out that you can have a recession without two consecutive declines in GDP (we did it in 2001). ... How can that be? Perhaps because GDP is a pretty crude measurement of economic well-being. It measures the output of the economy, but not some of the things that matter most, such as jobs, income and wealth.

GDP is a quarterly accounting gimmick that may not be an accurate reflection of the economic reality. It includes inventory stockpiling and export growth, things that don't really increase the living standards of Americans.

For the first quarter, almost all the expected growth in the economy came from inventory growth and exports, with very little increase in either the amount of money individuals or companies earned, or in the things American households and businesses bought. We made a little bit more stuff, but it went into warehouses and onto ships, not into our homes and workplaces.

The economic historians who judge whether we've been in a recession use a variety of indicators, including GDP, but also job growth, income growth, industrial output and total sales by businesses.

By all of those measures except GDP, the current data show a recession is probably in progress.