Middle Class Gets Hammered, But Politicians Promised to Help
Politicians promise to help the middle class. Why do they do this? Because that’s where the majority is. The middle class is the majority class in the demographics.
What is the result of these promises? Decreased income for the middle class. Here i a safe rule to honor: Whenever politicians promise to achieve something, get ready for its opposite.
In 2011, the rich got richer, the poor stayed even, and the middle class lost ground. Median family income dropped 1.5%.
Income for those in the top 20% of income rose by 1.6% in 2011.
Median household income after price inflation was just over $50,000 in 2011. This was 8% lower than in 2007.
The Obama administration insisted that the Census Bureau’s figures are old, that the real figures point to a recovery. But the figures are accurate about the rich. Therefore, Obama should get credit for the better economy, and he should get credit for proposing actions to soak the rich. The New York Times reports:
Obama administration officials said Wednesday that more recent data on job growth, unemployment, and wages indicate that median income, adjusted for inflation, is growing this year. They pointed to the rise in income inequality as proof that their policy priorities are even more urgent. Rebecca M. Blank, the acting US commerce secretary, said in a statement that the rise ‘‘underscores the fact we must enact policies that help rebuild our economy not from the top down, but from the middle out.’’
It’s heads, Obama wins. Tails, Obama wins.
About three-fifths of the recovery’s job growth has been in low-wage parts of the economy.
The middle class is getting squeezed. That is what happens whenever politicians promises benefits to middle-class voters.
No politician campaigns on a program of “help the rich.” The rich do much better.
Never become the recipient of campaign promises. If you do, prepare for the worst.
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Published on September 13, 2012. The original is here.
The chart is here.