Presidential campaigns are a free-for-all when it comes to platitudes, promises, and pronouncements. Candidates and their supporters - in some cases, the White House - say what they need to say to garner votes, seemingly without considering the rigor or the implication of their arguments.

Presidential hopefuls tend to focus on the state of the economy, or voters' perception of it, and for good reason: People tend to vote their pocketbook when they go to the polls every four years to elect a president. Incumbents take credit for the positive outcomes and deny any responsibility for policy failures. Challengers do just the opposite. With that in mind, let's examine some of the promises and pablum being offered during the 2016 campaign season.

1. The economy is doing better than when Obama took office.

This is a standard Democratic talking point used to convince voters to keep a Democrat in the White House after the lackluster economic performance during President Barack Obama's two terms in office.

It is also quite silly. When Obama was sworn in on Jan. 20, 2009, the U.S. economy was suffering through the worst recession and economic crisis since the Great Depression. It would be difficult for the economy not to be doing better, even without all the ministrations from monetary and fiscal policy.

Read the full article at Economics 21: Campaign Malarkey Knows No Bounds