'What gives?' MSNBC analyst explains why deficit exploded under Trump

As many progressive economists anticipated, the GOP tax-cut bill—thought to primarily benefit the wealthy—has failed to stimulate the economy in a way that benefits the rest of Americans.

On MSNBC Tuesday, host Ali Velshi explained why so far the tax cuts appear to have succeeded in ballooning the deficit.

CNBC editor-at-large and policy analyst John Harwood then explained why, even though it seems counterintuitive, the deficit has grown under Republican presidents, and shrunk during the Democratic administrations of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

"What gives?" Velshi asked.

"Well, what gives is we have a very consistent pattern," Harwood said. "It's gone all the way back to Ronald Reagan."

"Why is that? The Republicans cut taxes," Harwood observed.

He pointed out that Trump administration officials, including Steve Mnuchin, promised that the deficit would not rise if they cut taxes.

"Well guess what?"

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