Shrinking Economy Could Help Trump in Fall Campaign

"Nobody expected the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates at its most recent meeting, and the Fed

complied. Yet what should have been an uneventful gathering of Fed officials instead may have signaled a troubling new turning point for the economy.
 The Fed substantially downgraded its economic outlook for the rest of the year, which will impact the presidential election if the Fed turns out to be right.
Trump,..... and it’s not clear his message of a declining America and his plans to hike tariffs on imports will appeal to struggling Americans. But Trump’s constant grousing about American jobs lost to free trade and trade partners that are “eating our lunch” will seem more legitimate – and gain more adherents – if the economy deteriorates as election day approaches.

.....there are unmistakable signs of a tepid economy losing steam. Job creation during the last three months of 2015 averaged 240,000 new jobs per month. For the most recent three months, the average has plunged to 116,000 per month. “New worries about the labor market were the major change to the language of the [Fed’s] statement,” UBS noted in a report." yahoo