October 31, 2003, 11:33 a.m.
Giant GDP
Brought to You by the Number 7.2, and the letter W.

You probably already know that the economy grew at a remarkable 7.2 percent annualized rate this past quarter. You also probably know that this number is quite large. What you might not know is just how large it is.

Consider this: none of the mostly prosperous thirty-two quarters Bill Clinton presided over could boast such a high rate of growth (he averaged roughly half as much throughout his presidency). In the name of bipartisan fairness, however, this last quarter’s rate is also a whopping four-and-a-half times what his father, Bush Sr., averaged. It even more-than doubles Reagan’s 3.1 percent average, although it should be noted that the Great Communicator’s average jumps to a stunning 4.7 percent if you start tallying after his tax cut took effect in 1982.

For the more visually inclined, the chart above demonstrates just how big this number this. Granted, BuzzCharts is comparing one quarter of George W. Bush’s tenure with the entire terms of the three previous presidents, but we’re doing so to make a point: this level of growth is stunning, and continuing at even half this pace will have us right back at the same levels of growth we experienced during the '80s and '90s.

Looks like the aughts ought to be just as prosperous as the decades before them.