In my opinion, this election is very simple and straightforward. No need to make it more complicated than it is. No need to overthink it. It comes down to one basic question. It’s an old expression, almost a cliche, but it is just as relevant today as it was 45 years ago when I first heard it. “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?”
I’m talking about you and your family. In my opinion, no part of most Americans’ lives is better than it was four years ago. Some people cite the rising values of their IRA and 401K accounts as the result of “bull” financial markets. Good for you if that is the case, but chances are inflation has eaten away most or all of those gains.
Inflation is eating most of us alive. Inflation is pervasive and relentless. Once it grabs hold of a country’s economy it is tenacious. When unchecked it has destroyed many a country’s economy, for example, post-WWI Germany and present-day Venezuela.
Our current inflation is manifesting in every aspect of our lives, sometimes obviously, sometimes more subtly. According to multiple media reports some 2/3 of households are living paycheck to paycheck. Many families have been paying for necessities with borrowed money, incurring credit card debt or by withdrawing funds from their IRA or 401k accounts. Their income increases, if any, have not kept pace with the rate of inflation due to reduced hours, layoffs or their employer closing or relocating. This is not sustainable.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”) the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”) has risen nearly 20% in the last three years. Of course, some categories have risen more than others, but I will highlight a few of the more significant ones.
For example, let’s look at food. According to the BLS the CPI for food has increased slightly more than 20% over the last three years. Some products have risen more than others; but that is the average. In addition, some products and brands of products have experienced supply chain interruptions for various reasons. There can be many causes of supply chain interruptions, but rising costs are generally a contributory factor.
When you buy groceries are you able to afford what you did four years ago, or do you find yourself having to cut back? Are you able to buy the same quality or quantity of meat? Are you able to buy meat at all, or do you have to settle for a cheaper substitute? Can you even find the foods or the particular brands you prefer? How about the prices of staples like milk, eggs, and cheese to name a few examples? Have you noticed that packages of food are smaller? Have you noticed that rolls of paper towels and toilet paper don’t last as long as they used to? No one actually counts the pieces, but it’s obvious there are fewer. These are but a few examples. When you eat out have you noticed the smaller portions and higher prices? In case you were wondering these are rhetorical questions.
How about gas at the pump? Even though prices have decreased recently, that is misleading since gas prices can and do fluctuate widely in the short term due to a variety of external factors. According to AAA the average price of a gallon of regular gas at the pump was $2.41 in January 2021 when Biden-Harris took office. The latest price is $3.23. That is a 34% increase. The price of fuel permeates every aspect of the economy.
The story is similar for other products such as clothing, shelter, loans, and virtually any and all other goods or services.
The quality of life has been deteriorating significantly. We are being overwhelmed by illegal aliens. No one knows how many of them have entered our country, but the most reliable estimate is 20 million. An untold number of them are terrorists, gang members, drug smugglers, women and children traffickers, and others who would do us harm. They have been distributed all throughout the country. Gangs have virtually overwhelmed and taken over some small cities, such as Aurora, CO. Not coincidentally, the rate of crime has skyrocketed, and it has become random and unpredictable. It’s not just in large cities like NYC, Chicago and LA. No area is safe. Many of us are afraid to venture out. We take our kids to school or the bus stop and pick them up lest they be harmed.
Whose fault is all this? Well, ask yourself, who has been in power for the last four years? Which party’s policies have been the root cause of the current situation? Those are rhetorical questions. We know the answer; it’s the Dems.
Don’t be deceived by the spin doctors and bloviators in the Dem Party or their allies in the media. They can try to deflect blame onto Trump or whomever else all they want. The simple, inescapable fact is they been in charge. They have called the shots. They have gotten us into this mess. What in the world would make you think that they can extricate us from it?
Harris has been trying to distance herself from the highly unpopular Joe Biden and his highly unpopular policies. She cannot. The inescapable fact is she has been his vice president. She has bragged that she was “the last person in the room” when decisions were made. She is equally culpable.
Don’t pay any attention to the celebrities and media mouthpieces who politicians use to bombard you with their “expert” opinions (favorable to them, of course). Celebrities may be very good at what they do – acting, singing, sports or whatever – but most of them know less than you about economics, personal finance or anything else outside of their limited area of expertise.
They don’t live in the real world. They preach to us about illegal immigration, sanctuary cities, and crime, but most of them live in a protected bubble. Most of them live in gated communities protected by security guards or in luxury apartments with doormen. When they venture out many of them have personal security to insulate them from the public.
They don’t buy food at the grocery store. They don’t buy gas at the pump. Many of them don’t even drive a car, fly commercial, or personally buy any of life’s necessities. They have other people for that. Many of them fly in private airplanes. They don’t have the same life experiences as you do.
Moreover, most of them are not objective. They are supporters or donors or have their own agenda. For example, remember the 51 ex-government officials who signed a letter that the Biden Campaign produced in 2020 stating that the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop were Russian disinformation? That was debunked but, of course, after the election. Those signatories should be embarrassed to have put their name to such a document.
Don’t be distracted by extraneous issues. Who cares if this candidate was a womanizer 20 years ago? Who cares if that candidate was mean to a child on the playground when he was ten years old, or was wild in college? Don’t be distracted. Most of us were involved in stupid or embarrassing incidents when we were younger. That is irrelevant now. What matters is the present and the future.
CONCLUSION
In my view, the number one issue in this election is the same one it always is. I believe renowned Dem strategist James Carville said it first, and it has been repeated many times and in every election. “IT’S THE ECONOMY, STUPID.”
Regardless of how the Dems try to spin it, they are the party that is responsible for the present state of our economy and everything else. Don’t be distracted or gaslighted by other issues. They may be important, but they are secondary to the economy. They don’t matter if you cannot feed and shelter your family.
Don’t be distracted about what the Dems and their supporters say about Trump or your personal feelings for him. Vote for number one. Vote for you and your family. Your kids and grandkids will thank you.
We Built It Blog by Larry Jacob 