President Biden’s reelection campaign is being hampered by stubbornly high prices and frozen wages, the ultimate economic phenomenon that makes consumers feel that the economy isn’t doing well.
I Would Vote If I Could Afford To
Ted Rall
Ted Rall is a syndicated political cartoonist for Andrews McMeel Syndication and WhoWhatWhy.org and Counterpoint. He is a contributor to Centerclip and co-host of "The Final Countdown" talk show on Radio Sputnik. He is a graphic novelist and author of many books of art and prose, and an occasional war correspondent. He is, recently, the author of the graphic novel "2024: Revisited."
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I’ve seen the schism between those who think the economy is doing GREAT!!!1! and those who think the economy is doing super double-plus ungood. And I don’t recall any time in my political lifespan where the debate has been this binary. Perhaps Ted could do an article for the Masses on the various ways the media misrepresents the stats.
For instance, one of the recent jobs reports was something like 239,000 new jobs. It was only when you dug down that you saw they were all retail or part-time. When that gets pointed out, the Bidenites scream in outrage something like, “There’s nothing wrong with working retail,” thus shifting the discussion from “Hey, if you were making $60K, and are now making $30K, that isn’t a good thing. The jobs aren’t fungible.”
Another for instance: how “inflation” is reported. Obviously, some products go up in price more than others. What’s 9% for one person is 12% for another or 5% for a third person. I think the media should stop with the “according to very rough preliminary data which will be updated with better information in the coming weeks” gimmick. If it’s June, report April’s figures with accuracy and precision. Don’t do the psychic bit.
And off to moderation! I wonder if this is how the Biden team does all his interviews, too. “We’re just gonna check the footage before we let you run it. Thanks.”
I still don’t understand the moderation bug here, Alex. I’ve white-listed you repeatedly.
Sounds like a good column; don’t know how I’d do this as a cartoon.
It’s fine. I just like to complain. Maybe the cartoon could be like “Peanuts.” Lots and lots of word balloons. Maybe Charlie Brown, about to jump from a roof, as Linus tries to talk him down.
Inflation and wages are much more controlled by the independent Federal Reserve than by the president of the United States. The chair of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, is a Trump appointee, so if any president is to blame here, it’s Trump. (Though personally, I put the blame more on COVID-19 than any president.) Perhaps if we call it Powellomics then people will understand what’s really going on.
No problem… solution, Proletariat Steak.
I will say the same thing I do to those on the left bragging about how the stock market did under Obama: I couldn’t agree more!! I don’t know how the poor people did but I did great!
“But I did great.” You’ve hit on a crucial point, I think. At the end of the day, just like in Reagan’s era, people will ask themselves, “Am I better off now than I was four years ago?” come Election Day. And I think Team Biden is in for one hell of a correction to their thinking.
Oh, and another thing! Same comment re: Trump conviction, missed opportunities, quiet reflection. You know the drill by now?