US Economic Leaders Testify About the State of the Economy
What else is each side focusing on?
- Yellen testified that Biden’s changes to the Child Tax Credit — namely increasing it and switching to monthly payments — decreased food insecurity by 24%.
- Powell testified that inflation should no longer be viewed as transitory, and that the risk of even higher inflation has increased.
- Yellen and Biden are contributing to inflation with all their cost subsidies.
The Narrative
The Biden administration is focusing on improving the lives of struggling Americans, and is already showing promising signs of success.
Although there is always room for economic improvement, supply chain and inflation issues are expected in the midst of a global pandemic. There were supply chain issues during Trump’s presidency as well, so Biden shouldn’t be blamed.
The left’s public policy decisions are wreaking havoc on the economy — alongside their inability to solve supply chain issues, inflation is already out of control.
President Biden’s proposed increase to the Child and Dependent Tax Credit will only make inflation worse.
How could a reasonable person come to think this?
Because the left focuses on the state of the people who are worst off in our economy, they tend to focus on economic indicators that depict the current state of the poorest among us — so statistics about the drop in food insecurity tend to be more salient to them.
Because the right focuses on the state of jobs and businesses, they tend to focus on economic indicators that depict a stable climate for businesses and long-term economic growth — so comments about run-away inflation tend to be more salient to them.
What else is the left focusing on?
- Yellen testified that Biden’s changes to the Child Tax Credit — namely increasing it and switching to monthly payments — decreased food insecurity by 24%.
The narrative: The Biden administration is focusing on improving the lives of struggling Americans, and is already showing promising signs of success.
Although there is always room for economic improvement, supply chain and inflation issues are expected in the midst of a global pandemic. There were supply chain issues during Trump’s presidency as well, so Biden shouldn’t be blamed.
How could a reasonable person come to believe this?
Because the left focuses on the state of the people who are worst off in our economy, they tend to focus on economic indicators that depict the current state of the poorest among us — so statistics about the drop in food insecurity tend to be more salient to them.
What else is the right focusing on?
- Powell testified that inflation should no longer be viewed as transitory, and that the risk of even higher inflation has increased.
- Yellen and Biden are contributing to inflation with all their cost subsidies.
The narrative: The left’s public policy decisions are wreaking havoc on the economy — alongside their inability to solve supply chain issues, inflation is already out of control.
President Biden’s proposed increase to the Child and Dependent Tax Credit will only make inflation worse.
How could a reasonable person come to believe this?
Because the right focuses on the state of jobs and businesses, they tend to focus on economic indicators that depict a stable climate for businesses and long-term economic growth — so comments about run-away inflation tend to be more salient to them.
Takeaways
As individuals, we only experience a very small slice of a much larger economy directly. As with many complex topics, we tend to defer to experts or figures we trust to help fill in the gaps.
Certain economic experts or political figures might feel more right to us than others, because they choose to focus on economic issues we feel are most important — one might focus on the labor participation rate, another might focus more on GDP growth, another might focus more on poverty levels, and still another might focus on economic mobility.
Our view on the political party in power also influences our perception of the economy. When our preferred party is in power we often expect the economy to be good. But when our contra partisans are in power we instead expect the economy to be bad.
What do you think? Do you agree with one side, or do you fall somewhere in between? Give us feedback on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, or by emailing info@narrativesproject.com.