Wall Street Is Doing Good But Main Street's Economy Is In The Crapper

 

Trump keeps bragging about how well Wall Street is doing, but that doesn't affect most Americans. For them, the economy is not doing well at all. Robert Reich explains:

Job growth slowed considerably last month. Employers added a less-than-expected 57,000 jobs in June, according to Labor Department data out today.

 

That’s far below the 129,000 jobs added in May and comes amid high anxiety about the state of the American economy. 

According to today’s report, average hourly earnings increased by 3.5 percent. But prices are increasing at an annual rate of 4.2 percent.

What do you get when prices are increasing faster than wages? You get people who are becoming poorer. And what do you get when people become poorer? Angry voters. 

Trump is constantly talking about the strength of the stock market. This morning he even shared a link to an article called “S&P 500 closes with strongest quarter since 2020.” Yesterday, when asked about the huge profits he’s made off his stock trades, he countered, “Well, you know why I’m profiting? Cause the stock market’s going up. Everybody’s profiting.”

The truth is most Americans aren’t profiting in the stock market. The richest 10 percent own over 90 percent of the value of all shares of stock. The richest 1 percent own over half of the value of all shares of stock.

 

Trump frequently points to 401(k) accounts as evidence of Americans benefiting from the strong stock market. But only around a third of working-age individuals have any savings at all in 401(k) accounts. About 40 percent of all Americans have no retirement savings whatsoever.

Bottom line: It’s a lousy economy. Anyone who voted for Trump in 2024 should have buyer’s remorse.

Are We Still In A Recession ?

Are we still in a recession? The answer to that question might depend on who you are. Wikipedia defines a recession as a slowdown in economic activity. The Websters Dictionary says it is a "temporary decline in economic activity or prosperity". Economists would define it as negative growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two quarters or more.

If you believe the economists, then we are not in a recession. We are currently showing positive economic growth -- although it is less than a 1% annual rate of growth. The Wall Street bankers and the corporate moguls would agree that the recession is over, because they have returned to making record profits and giving enormous bonuses. For them, good times are back.

But most Americans are not economists, Wall Street bankers, or corporate moguls. And they know the truth. The recession is not over for them. They know that there are 16.6 million Americans unemployed (probably more). They know that while the government says unemployment is at an unacceptable 9.1%, the real figure is closer to 10.8%. They know there are another 8.8 million people working part-time jobs because there is no full-time work for them.

And they know that for those lucky enough to still have a job, wages are stagnant and there's no guarantee their jobs won't be sent to China or India tomorrow. They also know the prices for food, gas, clothing, and housing are still rising -- things they cannot do without. And they know they are being squeezed harder and hurt more with each passing month. They know the recession is not over for them.

This attitude of most Americans is born out by a new CNN/ORC Poll. The poll was taken August 24th and 25th of 927 registered voters selected randomly nationwide (and has a 3 point margin of error). The poll asked a couple of questions. Is the economy in a recession? How bad is that recession? Here are the results:

IS THE ECONOMY CURRENTLY IN A RECESSION?
Yes...............82%
No...............18%

HOW BAD IS THE RECESSION?
Serious...............35%
Moderate...............34%
Mild...............13%
No recession...............18%

That's pretty clear. The vast majority of Americans know things are not right with the economy. Wall Street may be doing great, but Main Street is not. And the folks on Main Street know something else -- the recession won't be over until the unemployment situation is fixed. The poll then asked a third question:

WHAT SHOULD OBAMA CONSIDER MOST IMPORTANT?
Reducing the deficit...............30%
Creating jobs...............68%
No opinion...............2%

It looks like the people are finally figuring out the real solution to this economic mess we're in. The recession won't be over -- and the deficit won't be reduced -- until Americans are put back to work. After all, people can't feed their families or pay their taxes unless they have a job. That's just common sense.

Now if our elected federal officials could just figure out what the people already know, maybe we could get back on the road to recovery.