‘The Elkhart Truth’

‘Hoosiers Have Brought Our Economy Back In Spite Of The Burdens That Higher Taxes, Mandates And Increasing Regulations From Washington, D.C. Have Placed On Them’

“Obama to herald progress in Indiana...” (“Obama To Herald Progress In Indiana In Effort To Frame Election Debate,” The New York Times, 6/1/16)

GOV. PENCE: ‘Elkhart Has Rebounded In Spite Of Obama's Policies’

GOV. MIKE PENCE (R-IN): “Elkhart has rebounded in spite of Obama's policies: Mr. President, we welcome you back to Elkhart since your first visit since 2009. I believe the people of Elkhart and my fellow Hoosiers have brought our economy back in spite of the burdens that higher taxes, mandates and increasing regulations from Washington, D.C. have placed on them.” (Gov. Pence, “Elkhart Has Rebounded In Spite Of Obama's Policies,” The Elkhart Truth, 6/1/16)

SEN. DAN COATS (R-IN): “Today, Elkhart is in the national spotlight for its remarkable resilience. Hit hard during the recession, the citizens of Elkhart persevered and dramatically changed the city’s trajectory for the better. Today’s visit by President Obama should not be about glad-handing but should instead be a celebration of Elkhart’s strong work ethic and renewed economic success.” (Sen. Coats, Press Release, 6/1/16)

Elkhart Resident: “I can’t say I believe [President Obama]’s truly responsible for the recovery.” (“Elkhart Residents To Obama: ‘Tell Us How You Helped,’” The Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2016)

Elkhart Worker: “There’s no direct correlation to anything he’s done to help us... We’re not excited about anything he’s done. There’s nothing he’s done to help this industry around here.” (“Elkhart Residents To Obama: ‘Tell Us How You Helped,’” The Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2016)

Elkhart Obama Voter: “I think I’ll have to move eventually.” (“Elkhart Residents To Obama: ‘Tell Us How You Helped,’” The Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2016)

“[Elkhart residents] remember Obama’s August 2009 visit when he announced a $39.2 million federal grant for a company called Navistar that was supposed to create hundreds of jobs and build electric delivery trucks in Elkhart County. The jobs never arrived — from Navistar or other electric car-related companies that were touted at the time.” (“Elkhart Residents To Obama: ‘Tell Us How You Helped,’” The Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2016)

Elkhart Mayor Tim Neese: “The electric car endeavor proved not to be successful at all, and I think that’s what a lot of people point to with regard to the federal government... That did not materialize to the extent that we had hoped, or to the degree it was promoted.” (“Elkhart Residents To Obama: ‘Tell Us How You Helped,’” The Indianapolis Star, 5/31/2016)

President Obama ‘Presides Over The Feeblest Post-WWII Recovery’

SEN. MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “Our economy continues to be stuck in the worst recovery since World War II and the only solution the Obama Administration can come up with is more red tape that will hurt our nation’s working middle class.” (Sen. McConnell, Press Release, 5/18/16)

POLITIFACT: “Looking at GDP growth, the current recovery is indeed the slowest since the Depression.” (“Christie: The U.S. Is In The Worst Recovery Since WWII,” Politifact, 11/10/15)

“The reality is that the first quarter is further evidence of what has been the weakest economic expansion in the postwar era. The 0.5% growth is subject to revision but it follows 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Growth over the last six months has averaged about 1%, and under 2% over the last 12 months.” (Editorial, “Make America Grow Again,” Wall Street Journal, 4/29/16)

“It is now certain that President Obama will be the only U.S. president in history that did not deliver a single calendar year of 3.0%+ economic growth… It is also certain now that Obama will have presided over the feeblest economic recovery of the post-WWII era, following the worst recession of the post-WWII era.” (“Obama Presides Over The Feeblest Post-WWII Recovery,” RealClearMarkets, 5/9/16)

“On Friday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported that 2015 U.S. real GDP (RGDP) growth was 2.38%. No matter what revisions are subsequently made, 2015 will have been the tenth year in a row that RGDP growth came in at under 3.0%. The longest previous such run in U.S. economic history was only four years, and the last time that this happened was during the Great Depression (1930 - 1933).” (“Barack Obama's Sad Record on Economic Growth,” RealClearMarkets, 2/1/16)

PEW: ‘Middle Class Is Losing Ground … Across The Country’

WALL STREET JOURNAL: “No President has done worse by the middle class in modern times.” (Editorial, “Incomes And Poverty, 2014,” Wall Street Journal, 9/16/15)

AP: “In cities across America, the middle class is hollowing out.” (“Middle Class In Major U.S. Cities Is Shrinking, Pew Study Says,” AP, 5/12/16)

WASHINGTON POST’s Wonkblog: “The great shrinking of the middle class that has captured the attention of the nation is not only playing out in troubled regions like the Rust Belt, Appalachia and the Deep South, but in just about every metropolitan area in America…” (“The Middle Class Is Shrinking Just About Everywhere In America,” The Washington Post’s Wonkblog, 5/11/16)

PEW: “America’s Shrinking Middle Class… The middle class lost ground in nearly nine-in-ten U.S. metropolitan areas examined” (“America’s Shrinking Middle Class,” Pew Research Center, 5/11/16)

“The American middle class is losing ground in metropolitan areas across the country, affecting communities from Boston to Seattle and from Dallas to Milwaukee. From 2000 to 2014 the share of adults living in middle-income households fell in 203 of the 229 U.S. metropolitan areas examined in a new Pew Research Center analysis of government data. The decrease in the middle-class share was often substantial, measuring 6 percentage points or more in 53 metropolitan areas…” (“America’s Shrinking Middle Class,” Pew Research Center, 5/11/16)

“The changes at the metropolitan level… demonstrate that the national trend is the result of widespread declines in localities all around the country.” (“America’s Shrinking Middle Class,” Pew Research Center, 5/11/16)

PEW: “The decline in household incomes at the national level reflected nearly universal losses across U.S. metropolitan areas. Middle-income households lost ground financially in 222 of 229 metropolitan areas from 1999 to 2014.” (“America’s Shrinking Middle Class,” Pew Research Center, 5/11/16)

“American households in all income tiers experienced a decline in their incomes from 1999 to 2014. Nationally, the median income of middle-income households decreased from $77,898 in 1999 to $72,919 in 2014, a loss of 6%.” (“America’s Shrinking Middle Class,” Pew Research Center, 5/11/16)

‘Middle Class Is No Longer The Majority In America’

“The middle class is no longer the majority in America.” (“America’s Middle Class Is No Longer the Majority,” The Wall Street Journal, 12/09/2015)

“The nation's middle class, long a pillar of the U.S. economy and foundation of the American dream, has shrunk to the point where it no longer constitutes the majority of the adult population, according to a new major study.” (“Middle-Class Families, Pillar Of The American Dream, Are No Longer In The Majority, Study Finds,” Los Angeles Times, 12/09/2015)

PEW: “In early 2015, 120.8 million adults were in middle-income households, compared with 121.3 million in lower- and upper-income households combined, a demographic shift that could signal a tipping point…” (“The American Middle Class Is Losing Ground,” Pew Research Center, 12/9/15)

“…middle-income Americans have fallen further behind financially in the new century. In 2014, the median income of these households was 4% less than in 2000. Moreover, because of the housing market crisis and the Great Recession of 2007-09, their median wealth (assets minus debts) fell by 28% from 2001 to 2013.” (“The American Middle Class Is Losing Ground,” Pew Research Center, 12/9/15)

POLL: ‘The Next Generation Will Be Worse Off’

“A CNNMoney/E*Trade survey this month found that 56% of Americans think the next generation will be worse off than them financially.” (“56% Of Americans Think Their Kids Will Be Worse Off,” CNNmoney, 1/28/16)

2014: “The American Dream is impossible to achieve in this country... Young adults, age 18 to 34, are most likely to feel the dream is unattainable, with 63% saying it's impossible. This age group has suffered in the wake of the Great Recession, finding it hard to get good jobs.” (CNN Money, 6/4/14)

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SENATE REPUBLICAN COMMUNICATIONS CENTER

Related Issues: Middle Class, Economy

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