Three-And-A Half-Years Of Kamala Harris’ Inflation Is Eroding The American Dream

Prices Rose Again In August, As Inflation Remained Above The Fed’s Target Rate For Yet Another Month

“Data released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed prices climbed 2.5 percent in the 12 months ending in August.” (The Washington Post, 9/11/2024)

 ·       “[S]o-called core prices rose 3.2% in August from a year ago, the same as in July. On a month-to-month basis, core prices rose 0.3% last month, a slight pickup from July’s 0.2% increase. Economists closely watch core prices, which typically provide a better read of future inflation trends.” (The Associated Press, 9/11/2024)

·       “[T]he cost of rents and housing rose faster from July to August than they had the previous month, a big reason why core inflation ticked up.” (The Associated Press, 9/11/2024)

“Housing was a primary driver of both the headline growth number and the core inflation rate. Rents have been slow to fall after spiking in recent years, and the cost of homeownership has also frustrated many younger Americans…” (“Prices Continue to Be a Key Campaign Issue,” The New York Times, 9/11/2024)

·       “That ‘core’ monthly measure ticked up to 0.3 percent, which was hotter than expected. Housing in focus. That tick-up came as a closely watched housing measure, which tracks how much it would cost to rent owned housing, moved up. Economists will likely keep a close eye on that, because it has been expected to slow. Stubbornness there could make it harder to fully stamp out inflation.” (The New York Times, 9/11/2024)

The Cumulative Effect Of Inflation Since President Biden And Vice President Harris Took Office Has Americans Paying Significantly Higher Prices For Food, Energy, Transportation, Housing, And More

Since President Biden and Vice President Harris took office, inflation has increased 20.34%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Grocery (food at home) prices have increased 21.54%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Prices for food away from home have increased 23.3%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Energy prices have increased 37.7%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Prices for fuel oil have increased 43.43%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Gasoline (all types) prices have increased 45.8%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Natural gas prices have increased 23.42%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Electricity prices have increased 30.7%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Rental prices for a primary residence have increased 22.5%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Prices for used cars and trucks have increased 19%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Prices for new vehicles have increased 18.85%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Furniture prices have increased 11%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

·       Apparel prices have increased 11.8%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 8/14/2024)

·       Airline fares have increased 21%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/11/2024)

Three-And-A-Half Years Of Inflation Has Left ‘Scores Of Households And Businesses With The Feeling That The Economy Isn’t Working For Them’

“[T]he long stretch of sharp increases has left prices much higher than before the pandemic, leaving scores of households and businesses with the feeling that the economy isn’t working for them.” (“Inflation Drops To Lowest Level Since Feb. 2021 As Fed Plans Rate Cut,” The Washington Post, 9/11/2024)

·       “Americans still think about current price levels as much worse than they remember just a few years ago.” (“Prices Continue to Be a Key Campaign Issue,” The New York Times, 9/11/2024)

“Recent data from the University of Michigan survey of consumers, for example, showed a rise in the share of respondents who identify high prices as a source of their financial difficulties. In the August survey by the National Federation of Independent Business, 24 percent of business owners said that inflation is their top concern.” (“Prices Continue to Be a Key Campaign Issue,” The New York Times, 9/11/2024)

Americans Can Plainly See Kamala Harris’ Economic Record In The Higher Prices They Pay For Everything

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL BOARD: “Kamala Harris says the Biden Administration rescued the U.S. economy. The truth is that the Biden inflation has left most Americans worse off than they were before the pandemic. The latest evidence comes from Tuesday’s Census Bureau report on household income, poverty and health coverage in 2023.” (Editorial, “Why Americans Are Sour on the Economy,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/10/2024)

·       “Real median earnings for full-time workers last year declined 1.6% and even more for high-school grads (3.3%). This means inflation outpaced wage gains for most low-wage workers. One culprit may be that workers logged fewer hours and less overtime as the labor market started to soften, especially in leisure, hospitality and manufacturing. The upshot is that real median household income remains lower than in 2019 and has barely grown since 2020.” (Editorial, “Why Americans Are Sour on the Economy,” The Wall Street Journal, 9/10/2024)

Harris Herself Reminded The Country That She Cast The Tiebreaking Votes To Pass Democrats’ Reckless Taxing And Spending Sprees That Led To The Highest Inflation Since The 1980s

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: “[I]n fact, I was the tie-breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act …” (ABC News Presidential Debate, 9/10/2024)

March 4, 2021: Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tiebreaking vote on the motion to proceed to H.R.1319, the so-called American Rescue Plan Act. (H..R. 1319, Roll Call Vote #73: Passed 51-50 With Vice President Vote: D 48-0; R 0-50; I 2-0, 3/04/2021; VP Harris Voted Yea)

August 6, 2022: Vice President Harris cast the tiebreaking vote on the motion to proceed to H.R. 5376, the so-called Inflation Reduction Act. (H.R. 5376, Roll Call Vote #287: Passed 51-50 With Vice President Vote: D 48-0; R 0-50; I 2-0, 8/06/2022; VP Harris Voted Yea)

August 7, 2022: Vice President Harris cast the tiebreaking vote to pass the so-called Inflation Reduction Act. (H.R. 5376, Roll Call Vote #325: Passed 51-50 With Vice President Vote: D 48-0; R 0-50; I 2-0, 8/07/2022; VP Harris Voted Yea)

HARRIS: ‘That Is Called Bidenomics, And We Are Very Proud Of Bidenomics’

“In her CNN interview Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris gave her most forceful defense of President Biden’s economic record since becoming the Democratic nominee for president.” (“Inside Harris’ Delicate Balancing Act On The Economy,” Axios, 8/30/2024)

·       “As vice president, Harris has largely moved in lockstep with President Biden on economic issues, and some analysts see this record as a road map. ‘In general, we think she’ll pick up the Biden-Harris mantle,’ policy analysts at Evercore ISI said in a note Tuesday.” (“What Would a Harris Presidency Mean for the Economy?” The Wall Street Journal, 7/24/2024)

“Harris did her part. ‘Bidenomics is working,’ she said in Pleasant Prairie, Wis., last August. But the public, still smarting over high inflation, remained skeptical. Former President Trump routinely received better marks on the economy.” (“Inside Harris’ Delicate Balancing Act On The Economy,” Axios, 8/30/2024)

·       VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS: “[T]hat, my friends, is called Bidenomics. (Laughs.) … And Bidenomics is working.” (Vice President Harris, Remarks, Seattle, WA, 8/15/2023)

·       VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS: “All that, ladies and gentlemen and everyone else — that is called ‘Bidenomics.’ That is called Bidenomics, and we are very proud of Bidenomics.” (Vice President Harris, Remarks, Washington, DC, 8/04/2023)

‘The Original Sin Was The $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan’

“Economists largely agree that the pandemic stimulus and other spending bills Mr. Biden signed over the past two years have added to inflation …” (“An Inflation-Driven Midterm Will Not Change Biden’s Economic Focus,” The New York Times, 11/10/2022)

·       “Many economists have suggested that President Joe Biden’s stimulus package in March 2021 intensified the inflation surge.” (The Associated Press, 7/12/2023)

·       STEVEN RATTNER, Former Obama Administration Counselor to the Treasury Secretary: “The original sin was the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, passed in March [2021]. The bill — almost completely unfunded — sought to counter the effects of the Covid pandemic by focusing on demand-side stimulus rather than on investment. That has contributed materially to today’s inflation levels.” (Steven Rattner, Op-Ed, “I Warned the Democrats About Inflation,” The New York Times, 11/16/2021)

·       FORMER TREASURY SECRETARY LARRY SUMMERS: “I’m not sure that we would have the inflation if there had never been a pandemic and, even if there had been a pandemic, without the overwhelming stimulus that was applied well into recovery — during 2021.” (“Summers Says Pandemic Only Partly To Blame For Record Inflation,” The Harvard Gazette, 2/04/2022)

·       “‘The United States has had much more inflation than almost any other advanced economy in the world,’ said Jason Furman, an economist at Harvard University and former Obama administration economic adviser, who used comparable methodologies to look across areas and concluded that U.S. price increases have been consistently faster. The difference, he said, comes because ‘the United States’ stimulus is in a category of its own.’” (“Rapid Inflation Fuels Debate Over What’s to Blame: Pandemic or Policy,” The New York Times, 1/22/2022)

·       THE WASHINGTON POST’s FACT CHECKER: “[I]t’s generally believed that some inflation can be attributed to [Biden’s] covid relief bill.” (“Fact-Checking Biden’s Claims As He Seeks To Save His Candidacy,” The Washington Post, 7/10/2024)

Meanwhile, Job Growth Is Slowing, ‘Weighed Down By Elevated Interest Rates Designed To Temper Inflation’

“The overall labor market has been steadily cooling over the past year, weighed down by elevated interest rates designed to temper inflation. But a spike in the unemployment rate to 4.3 percent in July, the highest level since 2021, taken with other weak jobs data, sparked widespread recession fears and a major Wall Street sell-off last month.” (“Employers Added 142,000 Jobs In August, As Labor Market Cools,” The Washington Post, 9/06/2024)

·       “[F]ears have grown recently that the labor market isn’t simply bending under the weight of Federal Reserve inflation-busting interest hikes — but it’s actually breaking.” (“America Has The Fewest Jobs Available Since January 2021,” CNN, 9/04/2024)

·        “Earlier in the summer, the pace of hiring sank to the lowest point since the early months of the pandemic.” (“Employers Added 142,000 Jobs In August, As Labor Market Cools,” The Washington Post, 9/06/2024)

“The U.S. economy added far fewer jobs in 2023 and early 2024 than previously reported, a sign that cracks in the labor market are more severe — and began forming earlier — than initially believed.” (“U.S. Added 818,000 Fewer Jobs Than Reported Earlier,” The New York Times, 8/21/2024)

·       “Recently, the biggest downward revision in jobs data since 2009 showed that the United States added 818,000 fewer jobs in 2023 and early 2024 than previously reported…” (“Employers Added 142,000 Jobs In August, As Labor Market Cools,” The Washington Post, 9/06/2024)

As Kids Go Back To School, Once Again Parents And Teachers Are Paying More For School Supplies

‘Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices’

“While inflation, which measures how quickly costs rise, has come down this summer, prices are still well above their prepandemic levels. Since the pandemic, the cost of goods has gone up nearly 21 percent.” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

“Parents are struggling with back-to-school shopping in an era of stubbornly high prices. Multiple recent surveys show parents feel they are spending more on clothing and classroom supplies than before and may delay essential purchases or bills in order to afford their student’s supplies. And on top of thinking about their own children, parents are in some cases being asked to help bring in supplies and materials for the classroom for everyone to share as teachers also are seeing hardship as the school year nears.” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

·       “Lupine Skelly, retail, wholesale and distribution research leader at Deloitte, told The Hill parents are ‘entering their second back-to-school year with very high prices’ and ‘we are seeing a lot more kind of frugal behaviors this year.’” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

·       “‘We ask parents, “What is the No. 1 thing that’s on your mind right now?” It’s inflation and the economic struggle that so many families are in right now, and when we talk about back-to-school, that is just one of the main pain points for American families, because it brings into light just how much pressure we’re really under in this moment,’ said Keri Rodrigues, founder and president of National Parents Union. In a [recent] WalletHub survey … 52 percent of parents said they expect to spend more on back-to-school shopping than last year.” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

·       “An Intuit Credit Karma study [from August] showed around 50 percent of parents will pause essential purchases for a household such as groceries and bills to keep up with the cost of school supplies. The number is greater for Generation Z parents, at 60 percent, and millennial parents, with 56 percent giving up essentials to afford back to school items their children need.” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

“Pascale Small, a mother from California with three kids in school, told The Hill … ‘I have three kids. That starts to add up a lot. That might mean that I don’t pay, possibly, today right away. It might mean that I’m prioritizing shopping for them first, or it may mean that — I do have to still pay for the things I need to pay for my home, to make sure we keep a roof over our heads, the lights on and the water on, and I might not go fully school shopping for them as I would in the past.’” (“Back-To-School Shopping Presents ‘Pain Point’ For Families Amid High Prices,” The Hill, 8/07/2024)

‘Inflation Hitting Teachers Hard As Cost Of School Supplies Rises’

WPXI Channel 11 Pittsburgh’s Lisa Sylvester: “If you have been school supply shopping, and I certainly have, then it is no shock to you that the cost of supplies has risen by 25% since 2020. And it’s tougher than ever for parents, and also for teachers, who often have to dig into their own wallets to make sure their classrooms are fully stocked.” (“Inflation Hitting Teachers Hard As Cost Of School Supplies Rises,” WPXI-TV, 8/21/2024)

·       “Channel 11 News sat down with a group of educators from different school districts across western Pennsylvania and had candid conversations. Due to inflation, teachers are making 5% less than they did 10 years ago, and spending hundreds more.” (“Inflation Hitting Teachers Hard As Cost Of School Supplies Rises,” WPXI-TV, 8/21/2024)

All-In-All, ‘The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most’

“Americans overwhelmingly desire all the traditional trappings of the American dream—owning a home, having a family, and looking forward to a comfortable retirement. But very few believe they can easily achieve it.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

“A July Wall Street Journal/NORC poll of 1,502 U.S. adults shows a stark gap between people’s wishes and their expectations. The trend was consistent across gender and party lines, but held more true for younger generations, who have been priced out of homeownership and saddled with high interest rates and student debt.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

·       “While 89% of respondents said owning a home is either essential or important to their vision of the future, only 10% said homeownership is easy or somewhat easy to achieve. Financial security and a comfortable retirement were similarly labeled as essential or important by 96% and 95% of people, respectively, but rated as easy or somewhat easy to pull off by only 9% and 8%.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

·       “Twelve years ago, when researchers at Public Religion Research Institute asked 2,501 people if the American dream ‘still holds true,’ more than half said it did. When The Wall Street Journal asked the same question in July, that dropped to about a third of respondents.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

‘People Are Right To Feel That The American Dream Has Become Harder To Achieve Both In Terms Of Their Chances Of Doing Better Than Their Parents And Their Chances Of Rising Out Of Poverty’

“By many measures, economists say, people are right to feel that their shot at success has diminished. ‘Key aspects of the American dream seem out of reach in a way that they were not in past generations,’ says Emerson Sprick, an economist at Washington, D.C., think tank the Bipartisan Policy Center.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

“While around 90% of children born in 1940 were ultimately better off than their parents, according to research by Massachusetts Institute of Technology economics professor Nathaniel Hendren and Harvard University economist Raj Chetty, only around half of those born in the 1980s were able to say the same…. ‘It’s still a coin flip whether or not you’ll earn more than your parents, but mobility probably hit a record low in the early 2020s,’ Hendren says.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

“‘People are right to feel that the American dream has become harder to achieve both in terms of their chances of doing better than their parents and their chances of rising out of poverty,’ Chetty says.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

‘Many Are Struggling To Achieve Their Goals Of Homeownership At All’

“Many are struggling to achieve their goals of homeownership at all. Owning a home was a record 47% more expensive than renting for the 12 months ending in June, according to research by commercial real-estate services firm CBRE. That is even after rents have skyrocketed—though the firm forecasts improvement over the next year.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

“Richard Thomas and Cherish Celetti were sure they had pulled off their own version of the American dream when they bought a five-bedroom split-level in Mount Vernon, N.Y., for $612,000 in 2017. ‘It was like everything was going in the right direction,’ says Celetti, a 42-year-old lawyer who grew up poor among nine siblings. Buying her first house not only meant the couple’s children, now 8 and 11, could have their own bedrooms—a luxury both Thomas and Celetti used to pine for—but also that they had space to take in Celetti’s mom, Diane Thompson, and 20-year-old sister. The couple’s $5,400 mortgage, including $689 in private mortgage insurance, was tight but doable, between Celetti’s salary and her husband’s as mayor of the town at the time. But seemingly overnight, their energy costs doubled to more than $2,000 a month, and grocery prices, insurance and other bills for the family of now six surged.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

·       “Both Thomas and Celetti lowered their retirement contributions to near zero, scrapped plans for vacations and started setting the thermostat above 80 degrees in the summer and below 65 in the winter. They know selling the house—which has more than doubled in value—would be their best bet, but don’t know where they would go if they left.  ‘We want to stay in our community. We want to raise our kids here, but the dream of being able to do that really escapes us,’ says Thomas. ‘We had the American dream. Now it’s the American nightmare because it feels like the country made us a promise and then took it away.’” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

“Lily Roark’s father bought the eight-bedroom New Orleans fixer-upper she grew up in for $160,000 in the early 2000s. When she went to look for houses in Louisville, Ky., with partner Jessica Holland this past spring, she was sure $250,000 would be a big enough budget for a starter with one or two bedrooms. Instead, ‘we were looking at houses that had no walls and no floors,’ says Holland, a 28-year-old second grade teacher.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)

·       “Since Roark and Holland still want to give priority to saving for a house, the couple feels as though they can’t move forward with any of their other life goals—getting engaged, having a wedding and planning for children. They are both frustrated that homeownership and family formation seemed so much more attainable for their parents, who made less than their combined income of around $100,000 at their ages. ‘We’re doing everything right, we’re saving, we went to good schools, I have a master’s degree, and it’s still so hard,’ Holland says.” (“The American Dream Feels Out of Reach for Most,” The Wall Street Journal, 8/28/2024)