“Over 13.5 million jobs have been added since President Biden took office, and we are moving into a new stage of stable and equitable economic growth that is delivering on the promise of good jobs for all and lowering costs for working families everywhere.” – Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su, Sept. 1, 2023 .
By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | The most recent U.S. economic figures are out. And they are most positive for our nation, despite the negative reaction of Georgia Rep. Mike Collins (see below).
In large part because of right-wing propaganda, including from Collins and other GOP leaders, much of the American public doesn’t believe reality. They believe that the economy is sinking- “Most Republicans (54 percent) say that conditions are “very poor,” with only about 15 percent of Democrats saying the same,
Check the recently released economic figures:
- New jobs are up, once again. Last month, the US economy added 187,000 jobs. Healthcare was 70,000 of those jobs.
- Unemployment remains very low, 3.8 percent.
- Inflation (PCE index) has been brought down dramatically from its Covid highs and is now only 3.3 percent.
Unfortunately, when I speak with MAGA Trump supporters, they either do not believe the above facts or have never heard these facts because they only watch Fox and/or access radical MAGA social media. These conservatives, many of whom are working class and relatively uneducated per polling, prefer to believe what they hear on Fox, Newsmax and OAN. Specifically, the lie that the economy was great under Trump and sank under Biden.
And GOP Congressmen like Collins mislead the public by saying things like: “We’re now experiencing the highest joblessness rate since February of last year,” even though they know that the unemployment rate is at historic lows.
What is the truth? In the words of one commentator- “Trump didn’t build something new; rather he inherited a pretty good situation.” In fact, during the last year of the Trump reign:
- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) actually went down 3.4 percent. And prior to that, GDP growth was much less than other presidents.
- Under Trump, the economy lost nearly three million jobs.
- The unemployment rate was over six percent.
- Our trade deficit increased 40 percent, while our national debt increased by $7 trillion.
And yet many people feel Trump was a business president? How can they?
What can be done about this lack of acceptance of reality by MAGA people is the question facing not just the Democrats, but the nation as a whole? How can we ever come together if one segment of our population is fed “alternate facts” (i.e., lies) and steadfastly refuses to believe the truth?
There’s no optimism in me that things will change in the short term, at least with Donald Trump head of the GOP and no one willing to challenge him.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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