President Obama’s speech to a union crowd on Labour Day was an election-campaign event, more about politics than economics. He stirred his audience with a paean to organised labour, and fumed about the negativism of his Republican opponents: “They talk about me like a dog,” he said. He did call for $50bn of new spending on infrastructure, but spread over many years and “fully paid for” (how was not explained). This was not a stimulus proposal, and its chance of Congressional approval is anyway zero.

In a speech planned for today the president is expected to call for new investment tax credits, including the permanent extension of tax reliefs for research and development. Again, it seems, there will be no new stimulus: the cost will be met by closing so-called loopholes in corporate taxes. The very word “stimulus” appears to be forbidden.

On substance, the White House has surrendered. It is concentrating on energising its supporters ahead of the midterm elections and putting Republicans on the spot – daring them to oppose business tax cuts which (on its own analysis) are not tax cuts in the aggregate at all.