US Economic Growth Surpasses China for the First Time Since 1976
In spite of the fact that the Chinese government is subsidizing and attempting to stimulate the economy with various measures, the United States will see greater economic growth this year, for the first time since 1976. Coming during a mid-term election year, and remembering James Carville's election predicting advice, "It's the economy, stupid," this is good news. I know that policy and economic news doesn't always overcome the sensationalism of social issues and the repetitive loop of cable news themes pounded over and over, but there are people who pay attention to this.
Anyone who is paying attention will take note of the fact that this negates all of Trump's bombast about economic progress "never seen before in history." Well, he was a liar and his facts were skewed, but the economy under Biden has passed his benchmarks in both economic growth and job growth, with unemployment also being lower than we've seen it in five decades, including at any time under the failed former President 45.
But, Mr. Carville, Are People as Focused on the Economy as They Were Two Decades Back?
I observed individuals who paid more taxes on their income under former President 45 than they did under President Obama try to come up with a convoluted and complicated explanation as to why they were "better off" doing that. They knew their tax bill, on less income than they made in 2016, was higher by several percentage points, mainly because the exemptions were removed. But they had found someone who explained it all away by saying that the actual tax rate they were paying was lower by about a percentage point. But, because they lost several thousand dollars of deduction, their taxable income was higher. Somehow, to them, that meant they were paying lower taxes.
Well, OK. And that's the same kind of thing with the economy. Somehow, even though things are better and the economy is strong and productive and the only reason for not having a job is not wanting one, things are worse. Granted, there's an inflation problem, though unregulated businesses who can gouge customers under false pretenses is a major contributor to that problem, politics has become so intense that people lose the ability to think rationally.
Almost Halfway Through Year Two
We're not quite halfway through year two of the Biden Administration and the list of accomplishments and achievements is far longer, and much more stabilizing and beneficial, than anything we saw between January 20, 2017 and January 20, 2021. Though there's a fascist movement in one of our political parties that is using false pretenses to restrict citizens access to the ballot box, and is a genuine threat to our constitutional democracy, and to the very core values of our nation, we have people in charge who are competent, experienced and know what they're doing and a President who allows them to do their job.
As an American citizen, I am free. What freedoms has any American lost because of anything that the current administration has done? Attempts by the Republican party, and restrictions and laws they've passed mean that I pay a fortune for medical insurance, prescription drugs and health care, and their refusal to permit regulatory authority means I'm paying a fortune at the gas pump, most of which is not "inflation" caused by increase costs at all, but which is massive profiteering going into the pockets of the oil companies. Profits have soared, while the Biden administration reports that thousands of open drilling permits are going unused, so it is not the energy policy of this President that is causing these high gas prices, it is greed and the refusal of Republicans to hold oil companies accountable.
But there is nothing the Biden administration has done, or the Obama administration before this, that had interfered with a single individual freedom that I have. The interference with personal liberty that is occurring or planned is coming from the conservative far right. They want to restrict my right to vote and take away the effect of my ballot. They want the power to ignore election results based on false, unprovable claims of "fraud." They want to eliminate their accountability to the people.
What's Not to Like?
I haven't done any research, but I'd be willing to bet that the polling data generating the lower numbers of President Biden's job approval comes from sources funded by conservatives, or are made up of conservative pollsters. YouGov polls state that "live results" are not conclusive, but I've participated in several of their polls, and at least one MSN online poll where a majority of the respondents, over 50%, had indicated they either approved, or strongly approved, of the President's job performance.
And while we are experiencing inflation, some for reasons that can be identified, some because our businesses in this country know how to profiteer off of the news cycle, the administration is being as proactive as it can, far more than any GOP administration would ever try. I recall, the last time we had a spike in gas prices, during the previous failed administration of former President 45, a spokesperson from his Department of Commerce made the statement that "The President doesn't have any control over the price of gas, that's regulated on a global market."
What's not to approve? There's the economy. There's the outstanding manner in which the President is handling the situation with the Ukraine war, and most Americans, instead of following the conservative favoritism for Russia and Putin, would like to see the US do more to help Ukraine, not less. I have absolutely no doubt that any GOP administration would have done absolutely nothing to alleviate the baby formula shortage, since their view is "let the market control it." And because no Republican administration has ever bothered to do anything like that. A
And, oh, by the way, when I calculated my taxes this past spring, I paid less tax on a little more income than I did in 2020.
No comments:
Post a Comment