Bidenomics: US Economic Misery Index Rose Significantly During Biden Years
Despite White House claims to the contrary, indicators show that Americans are economically worse off under Biden than under Trump.
The US Misery Index is higher under Biden. The Misery Index is an economic indicator that measures the economic distress experienced by everyday people.
It combines the risk of unemployment with the increasing cost of living by adding the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate to the inflation rate. A lower score indicates less economic misery and a higher standard of living.
Until the pandemic lockdowns started in 2020, which Trump opposed, the U.S. experienced some of the lowest years of misery and the best economy in decades. In fact, in 2019, the U.S. experienced the lowest Misery Index since Eisenhower.
So far, the Biden years have all had a higher average Misery Index. Even since ending the pandemic lockdowns, Biden’s America is living in a greater degree of misery than during Trump
Economic Policy Uncertainty Index has been higher during the Biden administration and the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) has been lower. Gallup polls show that Americans’ economic confidence has been declining and remained negative in June.
Mainstream media and the White House are telling Americans that they are wrong about the economy, that things are actually great, but because of disinformation, we mistakenly believe that things are terrible. In his economic report, President Biden claimed that ‘Today, America once again has the strongest economy in the world.’
And this is true, but America always has the strongest economy in the world. China’s economy is 40% smaller with four times as many people. The economies of the G7 countries are already mature and grow at a much slower rate than the U.S.
But this is always the case. The evaluation of a president is whether Americans are living better under his watch than under his predecessor. And the answer is no, they are not.
Biden claims to have created a record 15 million jobs, but he is including people who were permitted to go back to work after the lockdowns finally ended. Only about 30% of the jobs are new, and about half of those are part-time jobs.
The way the Bureau of Labor Statistics defines employed, working one hour a week is considered employed. So, a person who lost their business during the pandemic and now works part-time at McDonald’s would be considered employed. And Biden would count that as a win.
The White House claims that “unemployment rate has been below 4 percent for the longest stretch in over 50 years,” which is an interesting, fun fact for a trivia night. But under Biden fewer Americans have full time jobs.
People only qualify as unemployed if they are looking for a job. People who stop looking or decide to live on government benefits. Under Biden, the labor force participation rate, the percentage of the working-age population that is either working or actively looking for work, is still lower than in 2019 under Trump.
And because these people are not looking for work, they are removed from Biden’s unemployment numbers. And yet, unemployment is higher under Biden than under Trump with the exception of the 2020 lockdown year.
Inflation is up under Biden. The White House keeps claiming to have reduced inflation because prices are rising at a slower rate than last year. However, prices are still dramatically higher than four years ago, and they continue to rise.
Once again, the White House and media are telling people that they are mistaken about goods being more expensive. Citizens have been posting receipts from McDonald’s or grocery stores showing the exorbitant prices they are paying now compared to 2019.
These posts have been called misinformation. Biden blames social media for making people believe the economy is bad. Ironically, the misinformation claims do not attempt to disprove the high prices people are paying; instead, they find some other way of framing the high prices as positive rather than dispelling the notion that things are more expensive.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes the Consumer Price Index, which clearly shows that prices are considerably higher under Biden, with the prices of some daily necessities like oil, gasoline, and food skyrocketing.
From 2020 to 2024, the cumulative inflation for food in the United States was approximately 22.13%. This means that food and beverages that cost $1 in 2020 would cost about $1.22 in 2024.
The annual average inflation rate for this period was around 5.12%, indicating significant inflation compared to the overall inflation rate of 4.76% during the same period. So, Americans are not wrong about their grocery bills being higher than they were under Trump.
It appears that Americans who believe that the cost of living is higher and that their employment situation is worse under Biden are correct.
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