Unless Congress acts, an unprecedented burst of deficit reduction is set to hit in 2013 that will likely throw the nation back into recession. And a new report by the National Association of Manufacturers suggests that anxiety over this prospect is already hampering economic growth and the damage could be profound and prolonged.
The report's executive summary says that if the fiscal contraction does happen, the economy will almost certainly experience a recession in 2013 and significantly arrested growth through 2014. It estimates that a loss of six million jobs would send the unemployment rate higher than 11 percent within the next 2 years.
