Editing It's the economy, stupid

{{Short description|Phrase from the 1992 US presidential campaign}}
"'''It's the economy, stupid'''" is a catchphrase that means that the primary concern of American voters is the state of the American economy, and how the economy affects their personal finances.<ref>{{cite web |first=Algenon |last=Cash |date=November 13, 2024 |url=https://www.carolinajournal.com/opinion/its-the-economy-stupid/ |title=It's the economy, stupid |work=The Carolina Journal |access-date=February 23, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Jacob |last=Rosenberg |date=December 12, 2024 |url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2024/12/what-is-the-economy-stupid-clinton-election-2024-democrat-identity-crisis/ |title="It's the Economy, Stupid" Is Never Just About the Economy |work=Mother Jones |access-date=February 23, 2025}}</ref>

The phrase was coined by [[James Carville]] in 1992 as "'''The economy, stupid'''". It is often quoted from a televised quip by Carville as "It's the economy, stupid". Carville was a strategist in [[Bill Clinton]]'s [[Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign|successful campaign]] in the [[1992 U.S. presidential election]] against incumbent [[George H. W. Bush]]. His phrase was directed at the campaign's workers and intended as one of three messages for them to focus on. The others were "Change vs. more of the same" and "Don't forget health care".

Clinton's campaign advantageously used the [[early 1990s recession|then-prevailing recession]] in the United States as one of the campaign's means to successfully unseat George H. W. Bush. In March 1991, days after the [[Gulf War#Ground campaign|ground war in Kuwait]], 90% of polled Americans approved of President Bush's job performance.<ref name=approval>Agiesta, Jennifer. [http://blog.washingtonpost.com/behind-the-numbers/2007/07/approval_highs_and_lows.html Approval Highs and Lows] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012041134/http://blog.washingtonpost.com/behind-the-numbers/2007/07/approval_highs_and_lows.html |date=2008-10-12 }}. ''The Washington Post''. 2007-07-24.</ref> During the following year, Americans' opinions turned sharply; 64% of polled Americans disapproved of Bush's job performance in August 1992.<ref name=approval/>

==History==
In order to keep the campaign on message, Carville hung a sign in Bill Clinton's [[Little Rock, Arkansas|Little Rock]] campaign headquarters that read:

#Change vs. more of the same.
#The economy, stupid.
#Don't forget health care.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/31/us/1992-campaign-democrats-clinton-bush-compete-be-champion-change-democrat-fights.html |title=THE 1992 CAMPAIGN: The Democrats -- Clinton and Bush Compete to Be Champion of Change; Democrat Fights Perceptions of Bush Gain |work=The New York Times |first=Michael |last=Kelly |date=October 31, 1992}}</ref>

Although the sign was intended for an internal audience of campaign workers, the second phrase became a ''[[de facto]]'' slogan for the Clinton [[1992 United States presidential election|election]] campaign.

==Legacy==
The phrase has become a [[snowclone]] repeated often in American [[political culture]], usually starting with the word "it's" and with commentators sometimes using a different word in place of "economy". Examples include "It's the deficit, stupid!",<ref>Plumer, Bradford. [https://web.archive.org/web/20041101114553/http://www.mojones.com/news/dailymojo/2004/09/09_515.html It's the Deficit, Stupid!]. ''[[Mother Jones (magazine)|Mother Jones]]''. 2004-09-16.</ref> "It's the corporation, stupid!",<ref>Ivins, Molly. [https://web.archive.org/web/20060224020518/http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/32699/ It's the Corporation, Stupid]. ''[[AlterNet]]''. 2006-02-23.</ref> "It's the math, stupid!",<ref>Falvey, Christopher J. [https://web.archive.org/web/20051026095401/http://www.vnvo.com/stories/its_math_stupid_p1.asp It's the Math, Stupid]. ''The VN/VO''. 2005-01-03.</ref> and "It's the voters, stupid!"<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080114031529/http://www.time.com/time/covers/0%2C16641%2C20080121%2C00.html "It's the Voters, Stupid"] ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' 2008-01-21</ref> Judge [[Mark E. Walker]] wrote, "It's the [[First Amendment]], stupid", in a decision regarding a case between [[Florida Department of Health]] officials and the abortion rights advocates Floridians Protecting Freedom after the department filed cease-and-desist letters against television stations that aired an advertisement produced by the group.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/17/media/florida-judge-tv-abortion-rights-ad-health/index.html |title='It's the First Amendment, stupid': Federal judge blasts DeSantis administration for threats against TV stations |date=October 17, 2024 |last1=Reilly |first1=Liam |last2=Stelter |first2=Brian |author-link2=Brian Stelter |publisher=[[CNN]] |access-date=October 17, 2024}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of United States political catchphrases]]
* ''[[The War Room]]''
* [[Keep it simple, stupid]]

==References==
{{wikiquote|James Carville}}
{{reflist|30em}}

[[Category:American political catchphrases]]
[[Category:Snowclones]]
[[Category:Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign]]
[[Category:Political quotes]]
[[Category:1992 quotations]]