The Biden administration is in the midst of trying to dance on the head of a pin by redefining the term “recession.” That ploy comes in advance of an economic report that is almost certainly going to show that 2Q GDP growth was negative, following a 1Q GDP that dropped by -1.6 percent.

For the better part of a century, two straight quarters of negative growth have defined a recession. In fact, every single such period in modern history has been given the label. All of the sudden, though, the rush is on to completely change the meaning of what a recession is so that the White House doesn’t have to face that political reality. Administration officials and the mainstream media are doing their best to gaslight the American people, making all kinds of historically inaccurate and ridiculous claims.

Then there’s White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who wants to have her cake and eat it too. At the same time she insists that two straight quarters of negative growth isn’t a recession, she also steadfastly refuses to provide a definition. On that front, Fox News’ Peter Doocy spun her around in circles during Wednesday’s briefing.

Doocy: If things are going so great, then why is it that WH officials are trying to redefine recession?

KJP: No, we're not redefining [it].

Doocy: "If we all understand [it] to be 2 consecutive quarters…& you have WH…say…that's not…how is that not redefining [it]? pic.twitter.com/FrQXLQIoJg

— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) July 27, 2022

You almost have the admire the mix of arrogance and vapidness. Somehow, Jean-Pierre manages to know absolutely nothing about what she speaks of while acting as if she knows everything, and she’s getting better at doing it with a straight face.

The White House is absolutely trying to redefine what a recession is. In the decades that modern economics has defined the term, there has never been an argument over its meaning. Only now that  Joe Biden might be saddled with one is the matter even in question, and it’s only in question to those who want to look Americans in the eye and tell them that the moon is made of cheese. But the moon is not, in fact, made of cheese.

Doocy wasn’t done with his line of questioning, though. He then hit Jean-Pierre with a stunner, quoting the White House’s own top economic advisor, Brian Deese, saying in 2008 that a recession is two straight quarters of negative growth.

Doocy: "What's the difference other than who's president?"

KJP: "I can speak to–I can speak to you what he said yesterday in front of all of you, which is the last thing that you just repeated. There are many factors…The textbook defintion…is not 2 negative quarters" (4/4) pic.twitter.com/dLpNtrVPEk

— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) July 27, 2022

Around and around we go. Jean-Pierre is nothing if she isn’t shameless. And while I realize she’s speaking for the White House, you’d think she’d come up with a better spin than this. Deese said what he said because what he said was true. Only now has he changed his tune, and for purely political reasons. To ignore that is absurd.

Further, the White House’s game of claiming that the technical definition of a recession no longer applies while at the same time refusing to provide what definition they are using is simply not acceptable. Americans should not be jerked around like this, and they shouldn’t be gas-lit by preposterous goalpost moving mean purely to protect the president. The economy is currently in a recession, full stop. Enough of this idiocy.