Trump Is Undermining Trust in Official Economic Statistics. China Shows Where That Path Can Lead

The article discusses how US President Donald Trump's repeated attacks on official economic statistics could undermine public trust in government data, similar to the situation in China. The Chinese government has a long history of manipulating its economic data to present a rosier picture of the country's performance. This practice has led to a severe erosion of trust in the credibility of China's official statistics among both domestic and international observers. The article argues that Trump's similar tactics of dismissing or questioning unfavorable economic data could follow a similar path, ultimately damaging the reputation and reliability of US government statistics. This could have significant consequences, as accurate and trustworthy economic data is crucial for policymakers, businesses, and the general public to make informed decisions. The article cautions that the undermining of trust in official statistics can be a slippery slope, leading to a breakdown in the public's faith in the government's ability to provide truthful and reliable information, with potentially far-reaching implications for the economy and society.