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Trump Economy And Regular Americans
I keep seeing the media present the case that Trump only helped the 1% and did nothing to help regular Americans. That assertion is demonstrably untrue.
Let’s look at real (inflation adjusted) median wages. (Expressed in 1984 dollars.)
Real median weekly wages of full time employees. (Expressed in 1984 dollars.)
BLS Data series LES1252881600Q
Obama 1st inauguration: 340
Trump inaugurated: 349
Change Obama 8 years: +9
Trump inaugurated: 349
Q1 2020 pre pandemic: 367
Change: +18
Trump inaugurated: 349
Biden inauguration: 377
Change under Trump +28
Biden inauguration: 377
Today: 365
Change under Biden: -12
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LES1252881600Q
Lots of people go to GDP to judge the health of an economy. And there’s lots to be said for GDP. But it’s a total. And like any aggregate, it can obscure as much as it reveals. That’s what I usually like to look at Real Median Wages and Real Median Household Income. Unfortunately, the Household Income number comes out annually, in September. So 2022 is the most recent we have…
Real Median Household Income
Obama 1st inauguration: 66280
Trump inaugurated: 70840
Change 8 Obama years: +4560 (6.9%)
Trump inaugurated: 70840
EoY 2019 pre pandemic: 78250
Change 3 Trump years: +7410 (10.5%)
Trump inaugurated: 70840
Biden inaugurated: 76660
Change Trump: +5820 (8.2%)
Biden inaugurated: 76660
2022 (most recent avail): 74580
Change Biden so far: -2080 (-2.7%)
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MEHOINUSA672N
So the reality is that for regular Americans, the Trump economy (especially pre-pandemic) was a resounding success.
Published in Economy
This is a good metric.
And Democrats had no answer for Trump’s roaring economy, so they weaponized the flu and shut it down. I think it all can be traced back to this moment:
She wasn’t just tearing up an official document; she was tearing up the social contract. It was a signal: “Release the
houndsvirus!“I am no economist, but I have always read that real wages inclusive of inflation were up at least 8% during Trump’s Presidency. Good post. It’s always important to read truthful figures, which I believe are called FACTS.
My retirement accounts had one good year under Obama, versus 3 good years under Trump.
Under Biden? Three bad years. We’ll see how the last one turns out…
That’s what they’ve said about every Republican administration for generations and what they will say about every future Republican administration. The old “The Rich get richer and the poor get poorer” trope.
I hear it a lot regarding Reagan … “destroyed the middle class” yadda yadda yadda…
For the record..
Median Real (inflation adjusted) Personal Income:
1976: 26450
1980: 25380
Carter Change: -4%
1988: 29080
Reagan Change: +14.5%
So much for destroying a thriving middle class. Carter did that. Reagan reinvigorated them!
Yes, I well remember talk about him “crushing” or “strangling” the middle class. Our side does it too, to some degree. People on the right talk about the “elites” killing off the middle class because the middle class is shrinking. But the middle class is shrinking in numbers not because middle-class people are becoming poor, but because many middle-class people have become upper class.
So many wins under Trump. Too bad people got tired of winning.
Would it be fair to say that assertion applies to Biden and not to Trump? Most of the excessively moneyed class did well during the pandemic and Biden.
Why do all the super-rich people seem to be Democrats? Even the mega corporations support mostly left-wing positions.
This is what has been supported by all administrations since Reagan until Trump and he was unable in his four year term to change that other than some small inroads.
Biden was put in place to put you peons back in your place and reverse Trump’s gains.
Trump’s possible future actions worry Biden supporters even more.
Ya, you betcha!
I don’t know what the voting habits of the super-rich are. Democrats always used to say they were all Republicans, now Republicans say they are all Democrats. I’d want to see some data before assuming that what everybody knows is correct.
This is just a pure guess on my part. If you are rich and Republican, you maybe don’t want to talk about politics in public a lot because you don’t want to reinforce the stereotype that rich people support Republicans because they have greed in common. So you vote and you donate, and mostly keep your mouth shut in public.
If you are rich and a Democrat, you want to trumpet it and tell the public, “I’m not one of those greedy rich people. Why, if I had my way, the government would confiscate most of my wealth!” It’s entirely possible that the very rich are fairly evenly split between the two parties, but one group is much more inclined to bring attention to themselves. But it’s just a theory. I don’t have data to back it up.
I think this way.
Mega corporations like lots of regulation (small businesses cannot compete and it creates barriers to entry) and globalization. The Dems are the party of regulation and globalization, so…
Yes, for those who want power with the people, big is bad.
I have always thought that was an extremely cheap gesture — completely without content.
Like her face.
GDP is OK as a metric but it includes government spending, so that can impact the number significantly.
His energy policy helped all Americans.
Yet, she ran the House the same way. She rammed through all the legislation she wanted. Trump was impeached twice, Peter Navarro is in jail and Bannon is next. She even ran a Fedsurrection to install Biden under emergency procedures that did not allow debate or dissent. Nancy was the Tyrant in White.
People can’t have that short of a memory – everyone did better and they are trying to flip the truth – it won’t work…….
But economic freedom is bad for the planet, increases income disparity and threatens to cause small business owners, plumbers, and auto technicians to move into and even exceed brackets occupied by college administrators and career regulators. And it causes icky conditions like competition. People should all be certified by diplomas, licenses, and certificates to keep jobs secure and everyone in their place.
They already have for many. I presented these same numbers elsewhere and was informed – Yeahbut
[facepalm]
For a couple of decades and running, I have noticed that the richest Americans have been overwhelmingly democrats. Here is a list of the top ten right now, according to Forbes Magazine, and their political affiliations (as far as I can tell):
Ellison is the lone guy in the top ten that I would even consider might be a republican, but I don’t know. If anybody knows their political affiliations better than I, please fill us in.
Oh, her face has a lot of content — mostly Botox, I believe.