Consumer spending would then soften. Corporate investment would weaken while surplus capacity was absorbed. All this implies a lengthy slowdown or recession. No one knows which interpretation is correct. Yet the campaign has all but ignored the uncertainty.
Prosperity is presumed because it's convenient.
Of course, Al Gore and George W. Bush have each claimed that the other's policies threaten prosperity. These attacks are ritualistic. Not much difference in the larger scheme. Whether the economy flourishes or flounders depends mainly on broad trends in consumer and business spending. What this campaign concerns is political philosophy, not economic policy.