Quote:President Joe Biden promised to make life more affordable for middle-class families — and that’s why the recent bout of inflation poses both a political and an economic risk.

Fewer than half of Americans, 45 percent, judge the economy to be in good shape, while 54 percent say it’s in poor shape, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Views are similar to what they were in AP-NORC polls in June and in March, despite increases in vaccinations and the flow of aid from Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.

The results suggest that the recent bout of inflation has Americans worried about the economy and their family finances even though the economy has been growing at a rapid clip.

John Novak, a 52-year-old school maintenance worker from Hudson, Wisconsin, is tired of seeing higher gasoline prices and six-month waits to buy a refrigerator. He blames the size of the aid package.

“Everything just costs more, and no one’s really making more other than if you get government money, which I did get some, but I’d rather have prices lower,” said Novak, who voted for President Donald Trump last year. “It’s a tough spot. We’re kind of coming out of this pandemic and then when you pour too much money in you just can’t get enough of what you want.”

The Biden administration is keenly aware that inflation is a potent weapon that could be used politically against Democrats. While pledging to stay vigilant against price increases, officials say that the recent burst reflects the complex nature of restarting an economy that had been shuttered because of the pandemic and that inflation will only be elevated temporarily as a result.

Surveys by Federal Reserve banks of manufacturers show that businesses expect inflation to last for months to come. A survey of manufacturers in Texas released Friday showed that although price hikes were slightly less widespread than a month ago, inflationary pressures remain near record highs in July.

The White House is not inspiring confidence in consumers by denying that the inflation obvious in the aisle of grocery stores, at the gas station, and in appliance stores is a figment of the imaginations of Republican critics.

Instead, the White House drive to politicize inflation and deny its reality is deepening the schism in the American public’s view of the economy. About six in 10 Democrats call the economy good, while three-quarters of Republicans say conditions are poor.

That spills over to how Americans are judging Biden’s handling of the economy, with 52 percent approving and 47 percent disapproving overall. Biden’s approval rating overall is somewhat higher, at 59 percent, as is his approval rating for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, at 66 percent.

About 8 in 10 Democrats, but only about 1 in 10 Republicans, approve of Biden on the economy. Republicans are somewhat more likely to approve of Biden’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic (about 3 in 10 do) and even issues like health care and infrastructure (about 2 in 10 do).

Federal Reserve officials have estimated that the economy could grow at roughly 7 percent this year. But the U.S. central bank is also tasked with maintaining price stability—wh9ich it now defines as inflation averaging around two percent over time—and there are signs that the pressures pushing up prices have yet to fade as there are limited supplies of houses, autos, and the raw materials used by many manufacturers.

The solid demand is supposed to lead to additional supply, which can then help inflation ease. But the outlook for inflation that Fed Chair Jerome Powell considers to be temporary has become somewhat more hazy. Consumer prices jumped 5.4 percent for the year ended in June. Stripping out volatile food and energy costs, they’re up 4.5 percent, the biggest increase since 1991.

What’s more, much of the new capital invested into U.S. businesses in recent years have gone to unprofitable younger companies, environmentalist cause companies, and tech giants that do not produce the kinds of products seeing the greatest inflationary pressures. As a result, many manufacturers lack the ability to expand to meet the demand.

“Traditional industrial companies receive such low valuations and their implicit cost of equity is so high, that investors have demanded dividends and buybacks rather than expansion,” hedge fund David Einhorn wrote in a letter to investors Monday. “Investors have been willing to grant nearly unlimited cheap equity to the constituents of the Goldman Sachs Non-Profitable Technology Index (up 99.7% in the last year), but hardly any for companies that make things and their suppliers.”

Even Powell himself at times has sounded unsure of his thesis that inflation will be transitory.

“We don’t have another example of the last time we reopened a $20 trillion economy,” Powell told the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee this month. “We’re humble about what we understand.”

Joseph Smith, 72 and a retiree in Alexandria, Virginia, said he worries that the constant focus on inflation by Powell and Republicans has been spooking consumers.

“The Fed is sort of hindering the economy by talking about inflation all the time,” said Smith, who supported Biden last year and feels the president has brought “real stability” to the government with his straight talk on the coronavirus and the economy.

Republican lawmakers have blamed Biden’s spending for the inflation and say his plans for another $4.1 trillion in new spending to be paid for through taxes on the wealthy and corporations will only cause prices to keep rising. They frame it as a return to the runaway price increases of the 1970s, even though economists who are concerned about inflation say that’s not the case. But the message is connecting with Republican voters.

“As Joe Biden’s inflation crisis rages, he just can’t stop fueling it with more reckless government spending,” said Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. “Americans are experiencing 1970s-style inflation again, and it’s because of Joe Biden’s failed economic policies.”

Those kinds of criticisms are being echoed by voters in a sign of the challenge before Biden as he tries to broaden the appeal of his policies.

Gregory Holman, 58, a hotel property manager in Grants Pass, Oregon, said he couldn’t find an affordable used car. He said it was the fault of too much government spending and graded Biden accordingly.

“I’d give him an F,” Holman said. “He’s just a failure at everything he does.”

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Tt's an Associated Press poll so you know it is biased at least 10 points toward Biden. Anyone who doesn't live in the DC bubble knows that inflation is rampant and building momentum.

Got Mexican restaurants closing around here. Combination of the higher cost of food and inability to hire cooks and servers due to the child tax credit advances people are getting. I'm talking about restaurants that have wait times EVERY Friday and Saturday night closing. Food prices are getting serious especially when you can't fill every table due to lack of employees. But by all means 52% approval rating.
https://www.wlox.com/2021/07/27/restaura...inue-rise/

I contract for a prop mngr these days for shites + $$$$$

a 3 bedroom sec 8 pos rental goes for what?!!! (remember, it’s the ‘burg in the ‘sip) ….. wait fo’ it ……………..

1.15k/mo

#infiltration

@20underAroof

(07-27-2021 10:14 AM)Eagleaidaholic Wrote:  Got Mexican restaurants closing around here. Combination of the higher cost of food and inability to hire cooks and servers due to the child tax credit advances people are getting. I'm talking about restaurants that have wait times EVERY Friday and Saturday night closing. Food prices are getting serious especially when you can't fill every table due to lack of employees. But by all means 52% approval rating.
https://www.wlox.com/2021/07/27/restaura...inue-rise/

food prices are off the fk’n chain…

hence #costa as the long term plan

@saltLife

Another poll stating the in a statistical sample of 0.000039% of Americans stating that "45% of Americans".....

Accurate reporting would actually say that "45% of Americans surveyed......"



That is like Tom saying Everybody hates Trump - when his survey only includes his own opinion.

uh, all I can say is dohhhhhhhhh...

A poster at another board put me onto this website, from World Bank data.

https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NV....cations=US

The value-added share of GDP for the USA has declined from 16% in 1997 to under 11% today. That is neither healthy nor good.

From the same source, China now sits at 26+%. Only other places above 22.4% are Ireland, Czech Republic, Algeria, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and Thailand.

China is, and has to be, an export economy at that level. That does make them vulnerable in some ways. If the US Navy is not protecting the sea lines of communication (SLOC) for such trade to move, their economy is threatened, because their navy cannot. That's one reason for their belt and road initiative, to create ways to move stuff overland to Eurasia and Africa.

It's kind of like they are trying to reverse what happened around 1500, when the Portuguese under Dias and da Gama found a sea route around Africa.

Spending money like a drunken sailor at a whorehouse, propping up the economy constantly with "stimulus" checks and tax credit advancements, disrupting multiple industries, pushing for tax increases non-stop, inflation at its most rampant in decades... I shudder what to think what will happen when this current economic bubble pops.

Thanks To Inflation, American Wages Drop By Nearly 2%

Quote:According to federal data, the average American’s wage is on the decline due to inflation.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that “average hourly earnings” in the United States rose from $29.35 in June 2020 to $30.40 in June 2021 — a 3.6% increase. However, when factoring in inflation — specifically through the Consumer Price Index, which has risen by 5.3% since June 2020 — “real average hourly earnings” have diminished by 1.7% over the past year, despite a robust economic recovery during the same period.

For an American earning $50,000 per year, the agency’s findings imply the equivalent of an $850 cut in yearly wages.

The decline in real wages has been worsening for most of 2021. As of December, real average hourly earnings had risen year-over-year by 4.2%. In January, February, March, April, and May, the year-over-year rates declined to 3.8%, 3.4%, 1.6%, -1.7%, and -2.6% respectively, before improving to -1.7% in June.

Between January and June, the inflation rate nearly quadrupled from 1.4% to 5.3%. As Moody’s Investors Service vice president William Foster explained to CNBC: “Inflation is a tax. That’s the best way to think about it.”

Inflation — the erosion of a currency’s purchasing power over time — is particularly noticeable for members of the working class, who hold a greater percentage of their assets in the form of cash rather than land, securities, and other investments that are largely immune to the effects of rising price levels.

During a speech last week, Biden brushed off growing concerns about inflation:

We also know that as our economy has come roaring back, we’ve seen some price increases. Some folks have raised worries that this could be a sign of persistent inflation. But that’s not our view. Our experts believe and the data shows that most of the price increases we’ve seen are — were expected and expected to be temporary.

Now, I want to be clear: My administration understands that if we were to ever experience unchecked inflation over the long term that would pose real challenges to our economy. So while we’re confident that isn’t what we are seeing today, we’re going to remain vigilant about any response that is needed.

Despite rising levels of inflation, the Federal Reserve has declined to increase its near-zero interest rate target or taper its $120 billion monthly asset purchases — both of which increase the supply of the dollar in the American economy.

It is NOT inflation. Bidenflation is just gutting the U.S. economy.

If we get the virus under control, we improve our economy. It's always been that way.

(07-27-2021 07:22 PM)swagsurfer11 Wrote:  If we get the virus under control, we improve our economy. It's always been that way.

You identify as a dumb dumb...