The Middle Class vs The Democrats
We are right in the middle of the Democrat’s National convention and the one group both parties want to attract is the middle class. Depending on what TV or print media you follow, making a case for the middle class to support each party is being attempted. This article is aimed to take a quick look at the Middle Class vs the Democrats.
At this time, the American economy is facing huge headwinds, especially for the middle class. We will look at what the Democrats are saying vs what is really happening. Both Biden and Harris are talking up “their” economy. The liberal biased new media also is singing glowing praises of Biden/Kamala-onomics. But is it really that good for the middle class.
Both Democrats and Republicans are working very hard to get the vote of middle class women voters. Both see women as an area that both might draw swing votes to their parties. But can the Democrats really appeal to this group of female voters by constantly bringing up the issue of abortion? Or is the matter of middle class economics the elephant in the room?
What has been impacting the middle class hard is the Biden/Harris created inflation. The effects of both the Biden/Harris round of covid stimulus and the trillion dollars of spending buried in the supposed Inflation Reduction Act has caused a rate of inflation that hasn’t been seen in 45 years. The group that has been getting hit the hardest has been the middle class. Things like, electric bills are up around 25% since 2021, Rent is up 30%, mortgage rates have doubled, auto insurance is up 33%, groceries are up 25%, used cars are up 35% and hotels are up 15%.
All these increases have hit hard at a middle class family’s finances. While most middle class workers have gotten raises, they are struggling because the first $11,434.00 dollars they got in those raises would only keep them even with 2021. And while the rate of inflation has fallen, prices are still going up, not down. And because of their earnings, there is no special help coming from the government that lessens the impact of inflation.
In fact, if Kamala Harris is elected, it’s the middle class that could be hurt the hardest. Many in the Democrat party are talking of not extending the Trump tax cuts if they get the Presidency. By doing this, it’s the middle class that will feel the financial effect the most. While Democrats keep saying that it’s the rich that get the most benefits from the Trump tax cuts, it’s actually the middle class and poor who depend on it for extra everyday spending money. The Trump tax cuts put more “take home” money into their paychecks which allows them some breathing room as they navigate their way to their next paycheck. Take it away and both groups would have to immediately cut their discretionary spending.
This last item that puts the middle class at odds with the Democrats is the fact that the economy the Democrats are bragging about is weakening. It’s now very normal to read that corporations are laying off workers. But these workers aren’t just blue collar workers, but to a greater extent middle class jobs. Even high paying tech jobs in California’s Silicon Valley are being cut by the tens of thousands. Auto maker Stellantis just announced 3700 jobs being cut. General Motors is cutting another 2000 high paying tech workers in spite of the fact that the company just reported earning billions of dollars in quarterly profits. It seems the middle class has a big target on their back as they fight to just keep the financial position they had in 2021.
This election will determine whether the middle class stays or whether American society evolves into two classes, the rich and the poor. It’s the middle that’s being squeezed. Will the middle class voter realize this or will they buy into the unicorn, pie in the sky rhetoric the Democrats are peddling? Only time will tell.