I started reading Politico a few years ago when my dad would cite it for political discussions we would have. I looked into it to see what it was all about and pretty much thought it was what everyone now know, propaganda. However, this article is interesting. It basically confirms what the majority of this board have been saying for years.

1. Unemployment isn't historically low. We just count people doing part-time/gig work as fully employed. Also, some people have dropped out of the job market.

2. Wages aren't rising. They have risen at the top of the market, but the average employee is making basically the same.

3. Inflation is higher than reported. The CPI accounts for roughly 80,000 products, but the average person buys only a fraction of those products. When you look at what people buy, it's almost twice as high.

4. GDP is a poor indicator of overall economic health. Yes it keeps going up, but when wages stagnate at the bottom and inflation increases at the bottom, people are drowning.

That last point maybe a little socialist, but the reason working class/blue collar people voted for Trump is because he promised to make their lives better. I know socialism can't do that, but we need to figure out how we can do it. Anyways, it might be government propaganda, but it's the most honest article I've seen on Politico ever. I think it's worth a read.

What article? You didn't link anything.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/02/11/democrats-tricked-strong-economy-00203464

Sorry, I suck at TexAgging. I couldn't figure out how to do it on my phone, and I didn't want to write everything again.

2/10 SWB said:

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I started reading Politico a few years ago when my dad would cite it for political discussions we would have. I looked into it to see what it was all about and pretty much thought it was what everyone now know, propaganda. However, this article is interesting. It basically confirms what the majority of this board have been saying for years.

1. Unemployment isn't historically low. We just count people doing part-time/gig work as fully employed. Also, some people have dropped out of the job market.

2. Wages aren't rising. They have risen at the top of the market, but the average employee is making basically the same.

3. Inflation is higher than reported. The CPI accounts for roughly 80,000 products, but the average person buys only a fraction of those products. When you look at what people buy, it's almost twice as high.

4. GDP is a poor indicator of overall economic health. Yes it keeps going up, but when wages stagnate at the bottom and inflation increases at the bottom, people are drowning.

That last point maybe a little socialist, but the reason working class/blue collar people voted for Trump is because he promised to make their lives better. I know socialism can't do that, but we need to figure out how we can do it. Anyways, it might be government propaganda, but it's the most honest article I've seen on Politico ever. I think it's worth a read.

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Its not socialist to recognize some built-in discrepancy or gap (usually the fault of policy) that has grown. One one thing a hell lot less foreign outsourcing is one -- but that is one MAGA is "on it" about so that's in motion. Another is far less regulations and legal hoops of any kind. Another thing the middle and working class don't have is $$ to spend on lawyers. A Trump goal of more money back in the people's hands rather than the pockets of the policy class is another way, and that too, is underway. We will see.

Referencing point 2 in the OP. Listening to Hannity today with guest Speaker Newt Gingrich, they credited President Reagan firing the air traffic controllers for striking for NOT causing wage inflation.

Edit: Added President because that's what he deserves.

It's Politico OP, I'll be watching paint dry.

Candidates matter regardless of your opinion of if the the 16 election was legit
Trump beat HRC and Harris 2 historically bad candidates based on their appeal to working class male voters

GDP was *******ized as a metric. Service isn't production and never will be. Turning a rotational carpool into a rotational Uber doesn't magically create economic value. If our nation makes less stuff: our actual production decreases.

Sq 17 said:

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Candidates matter regardless of your opinion of if the the 16 election was legit
Trump beat HRC and Harris 2 historically bad candidates based on their appeal to working class male voters

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Did you mean the '20 election?

2/10 SWB said:

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4. GDP is a poor indicator of overall economic health. Yes it keeps going up, but when wages stagnate at the bottom and inflation increases at the bottom, people are drowning.

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This is what happens when the wealthy elites and their corporations make record profits through the various industrial/pharma/tech/green energy/whatever industrial complexes, extracting American wealth through wars, covid, climate emergencies, whatever.

Unless you have millions in the market to draft off the actions of the elites, you don't benefit from this AT ALL.

Instead, your dollar becomes worth less as the cost of goods goes up.

Put another way: the rich getting richer, the poor getting poorer.

I skimmed the article and it reads like the Democrats just read the data wrong.

NO... if you're going to write an article like that, you have to determine why the data was read wrong. It was gamed. The Biden Administration lied about the data and the MSM was complicit in broadcasting it to the masses.

So, yes... if they weren't a political hack of a publication, they'd have said that.

Now for your points:
1. Obama and the Democrats ruled by decree that 30hrs would be considered full time in terms of healthcare. So, guess what. People who had worked 30-35+ hrs got their hours cut. So, you had to count them, only many of them now had to get another part time job. Just dumb.

2. Incomes haven't risen in the real world. Once you pull out the increases for Gov workers... Federal. Teachers. Once you account for those increases, the rest of us lost pace. I have a team and in 2021 everyone of us was above the midpoint of our salary range. We are all 7+ yrs employees at the company and in our jobs most of that time. Fast forward to 2024 and after the FY25 pay increases... AFTER the increases... only 1 person on my team is currently above the midpoint. 2 of them are down to 90% of their midpoint.

3. The Biden Administration has further gamed the CPI even more than when Clinton "adjusted" it. We'll never know the true numbers anymore.

4. GDP includes Gov spending. We've been so bloated with Gov spending because it artificially makes the GDP look strong. With Inflation twice what is reported, the GDP grows with Inflation. Additionally, Obama gamed the GDP because now we include Intellectual Property.

It scares me to think where we are as a nation if you were to report accurate employment numbers and account for true CPI and GDP, where we'd be and where we WILL be if DOGE is allowed to eliminate Fraud, Waste, and Abuse. Republicans have been complicit because they realize the forthcoming collapse.

Never clicking a Politico link. Fraudsters.

DallasAg 94 said:

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I skimmed the article and it reads like the Democrats just read the data wrong.

NO... if you're going to write an article like that, you have to determine why the data was read wrong. It was gamed. The Biden Administration lied about the data and the MSM was complicit in broadcasting it to the masses.

So, yes... if they weren't a political hack of a publication, they'd have said that.

Now for your points:
1. Obama and the Democrats ruled by decree that 30hrs would be considered full time in terms of healthcare. So, guess what. People who had worked 30-35+ hrs got their hours cut. So, you had to count them, only many of them now had to get another part time job. Just dumb.

2. Incomes haven't risen in the real world. Once you pull out the increases for Gov workers... Federal. Teachers. Once you account for those increases, the rest of us lost pace. I have a team and in 2021 everyone of us was above the midpoint of our salary range. We are all 7+ yrs employees at the company and in our jobs most of that time. Fast forward to 2024 and after the FY25 pay increases... AFTER the increases... only 1 person on my team is currently above the midpoint. 2 of them are down to 90% of their midpoint.

3. The Biden Administration has further gamed the CPI even more than when Clinton "adjusted" it. We'll never know the true numbers anymore.

4. GDP includes Gov spending. We've been so bloated with Gov spending because it artificially makes the GDP look strong. With Inflation twice what is reported, the GDP grows with Inflation. Additionally, Obama gamed the GDP because now we include Intellectual Property.

It scares me to think where we are as a nation if you were to report accurate employment numbers and account for true CPI and GDP, where we'd be and where we WILL be if DOGE is allowed to eliminate Fraud, Waste, and Abuse. Republicans have been complicit because they realize the forthcoming collapse.

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Interesting.

Though personally, doubt "collapse" would happen if you removed these as last year from policy setting: Uniparty, Mainstream Media, Academia.

And replaced that with the kind of just American energy unleashed represented by Elon's SpaceX achievements, a non ideological Amazon, more $$ back in the productive American spirit type hands --- the bad and criminal simply gotten rid of, and so on.

Simply amazing.