U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Commerce released data showing real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.9 percent in the second quarter of 2022, following a decline of 1.6 percent in the first quarter of 2022. Two consecutive quarters of GDP decline indicate the U.S. economy is in recession.

“Between falling GDP, rising interest rates, high gas prices, the highest inflation in four decades, stagnating wage growth, and warning signs in the workforce and housing markets, there is no question that our economy is troubled. The Biden administration has a responsibility to face that head on, not to try to redefine what it means to be in a recession,” Senator Murkowski said. “The current economic reality is hurting American families and businesses. This is not the time to spend or tax hundreds of billions more; it is time to start approving common sense development projects like Willow that will help bring down inflation, create jobs, and return our economy to growth—at no cost to taxpayers.”

Related Issues: Budget, Spending, and the National Debt

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