They can lean on the Fed, and they did.

A fast hike would have caused pain, but the money printing that we did anyway would have helped mitigate that. Instead, it just went to propping up asset prices. Bank Bailout 2.0; we didn't learn our lesson, and the incumbent party was yet again ousted.

America's economy probably did better than anywhere else in the rich world. I don't see how we can view this as a fail

You're doing it again.