WH’s Deese: ‘In Terms of the Technical Definition,’ Two Negative Quarters of Growth ‘Not a Recession’

As concerns mount about a possible recession this year, White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese argued that a second consecutive quarter of negative GDP growth was technically “not a recession.”

According to Deese, the “technical definition considers a much broader spectrum of data points.” He also emphasized the need to look ahead rather than “technical debates about backward-looking data.”

CNN “New Day” host John Berman said, “It sounds like you’re anticipating what will be comments from some saying two quarters of negative growth in a row — that’s a recession.”

“Right,” Deese replied. “And certainly, in terms of the technical definition, it’s not a recession. The technical definition considers a much broader spectrum of data points. But in practical terms, what matters to American people is whether they have a little economic breathing room, they have more job opportunities, their wages are going up. That has been Joe Biden’s focus since coming into office. He has had a view of the economy that we need to look to build from the bottom up.”

“What that means is typical working-class people in this country have had trouble affording things for years,” he continued. “He is focused on building a strong, durable, economic recovery here. We have real global challenges here in the short term. We’ve got to navigate our way through them, but we have to do so without giving up all our economic gains. That’s going to be our focus. And I think we need to train that focus on that rather than on sort of technical debates about backward-looking data.”

Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent