That thing is that the economy is the number one issue facing our nation. Just lik it was when Clinton first said it in 1992, when he first used the phrase in campaign against Bush the 1st, it has been in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2013 – the economy matters more, followed closely by Unemployment as a bi-lateral concern.
Presumably, from the way the stock martet behaved in 2013 – going up about 30% in a single year (as opposed to the 5 years it usually takes to gain that much), the economy must be booming – so why all the concern? Well, the simple answer to that is that the economy isn't benefitting the bottom 90% very much – from their point of view, things have not gotten much better at all. Not only that, but now we've cut off the Unemployment Insurance to 1.3M already struggling Americans.
As I noted in our Member Chat Room this morning:
As I said about that last week, screw those guys (from a top 1% perspective) because they only get about $1,200 a month so 1.3M of those lazy bastards losing their benefits is only $1.5Bn a month taken out of consumer spending – not a big effect – unless you happen to be one of those losers, then it's a life-changing effect but, hey, by the end of the year we save $18Bn, that's enough to paint an aircraft carrier – with the blood of those 1.3M of the families we're supposedly protecting…
Wall Street seems to have had a much better recovery than Main Street. Asset prices have responded vigorously while real wages have been squeezed. Inequality has been widening (see Free exchange). It is hardly surprising that voters have become discontented, with a surge in support for the populist right in Europe and plenty of partisan bickering in Washington. The combination of an angry electorate and nervous governments may lead to unpredictable policy measures--and an atmosphere that is hardly helpful to either business or investor confidence.
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