NBC’s Curry Warns Minuscule Spending Cuts in Debt Deal Could Harm Economy
Appearing on Wednesday's NBC Today, CNBC Mad Money host Jim Cramer blamed the debt ceiling standoff for stocks falling on Wall Street: “All people can talk about is the whole slow down that Washington triggered, the 'manufactured crisis,' as the President mentioned…” Co-host Ann Curry wondered: “To what degree did the spending cuts called for in this bill have an influence in this perception?” Cramer argued: “We've seen a trillion dollars lost in the stock market. Much of it is associated with companies that were doing well because of government – some people call it hand outs, I would say spending – and I think that, that is a huge part of the decline.” Curry touted an over-the-top prediction: “One advocacy group, the liberal-leaning Economic Policy Institute, says the economy could lose 1.8 million jobs in the next year due to the cuts in this deal.” When she asked if Cramer agreed with the absurd assertion, he skeptically replied: “Too dark. I think that we're going to muddle through here. I'm not – that would be a setback to the 2008-2009 great recession. Not going to happen. Way too doom and gloom.” Despite Curry and Cramer fretting over the supposedly massive “cuts” in spending included in the debt deal, as Investor's Business Daily points out , in reality, spending will continue to rise and remain at above average levels. Here is a full transcript of Curry's August 3 discussion with Cramer: 7:05AM ET ANN CURRY: Jim Cramer is the host of CNBC's Mad Money. Jim, good morning.
Posted by
on August 3, 2011. Filed under