Business investment is down, despite a massive tax break given to corporations. Corporate borrowing is at all time highs because of low interest rates. Unemployment is low, which typically causes pressure in the form of inflation. A rise in inflation is combated by the fed raising interest rates, but that inflation never happened. The fed is actively lowering rates.
Low unemployment, no increase in inflation, decrease in interest rates (and pressure to reduce them even further from the president), cheaper money, more borrowing, more debt...
So what is keeping the economy humming? Consumer spending. Through all this, businesses pulling back, increased tariffs putting cost pressure on goods, massive debt loads, a number of economic indicators pointing the wrong way, people have confidence and keep spending money.
While everyone here shakes their head and wags their finger, if people were to get wise to their spending and bring it down to a reasonable level, start saving and stop spending, pay down that debt, the economy would quickly retract.
Recession can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. This is why politicians, especially those riding on a strong economy as their crowning achievement, get really antsy when the r-word starts getting thrown around by economists in the news. If consumers were to believe these indicators pointing to a recession, they'd pull back on the reins and stop rolling tens of thousands in negative equity into their next car. That belief and the subsequent reduction in spending would absolutely push the economy toward that dreaded r-word.
So, I guess the moral is: Wag your finger at these people, but also shake their hand and thank them for taking one for the team, because they're the real reason your 401k is doing so well.