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As Wealthy Surge, U.S. Poor and Middle Class Incomes Have Gone Backward
Source: CommonDreams by Staff Writer Nadia Prupis
Middle- and low-income households in the U.S. made less money in 2014 than they did in 1999 as the middle class lost ground in almost 90 percent of the country's metropolitan areas, a new analysis by the Pew Research Center released Wednesday has found.
The report looked at 229 of the 381 federally designated "metropolitan statistical areas" in the U.S., from Seattle to Boston, which accounted for 76 percent of the nationwide population in 2014. It found that poorer households saw their income drop from a median of $26,373 in 1999 to $23,811 in 2014, while middle-class incomes fell from $77,898 to $72,919 in that same time period. The erosion of the middle class came as household incomes decreased, "a reminder that the economy has yet to fully recover from the effects of the Great Recession of 2007-09," Pew said—but more than that, it is a reflection of rising income inequality.
The report continues: The current and future status of the American middle class continues to be a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign. Moreover, new economic research suggests that a struggling middle class could be holding back the potential for future economic growth. The national trend is clear—the middle class is losing ground as a share of the population, and its share of aggregate U.S. household income is also declining.
With fewer families in the middle tier, the gap between rich and poor is widening, the report found, with the share of adults in lower-income tiers rising in 160 areas. The report follows a previous Pew analysis which found that for the first time in more than 40 years, the middle class is no longer the majority in America.
Read more: http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/05/12/wealthy-surge-us-poor-and-middle-class-incomes-have-gone-backward
The report looked at 229 of the 381 federally designated "metropolitan statistical areas" in the U.S., from Seattle to Boston, which accounted for 76 percent of the nationwide population in 2014. It found that poorer households saw their income drop from a median of $26,373 in 1999 to $23,811 in 2014, while middle-class incomes fell from $77,898 to $72,919 in that same time period. The erosion of the middle class came as household incomes decreased, "a reminder that the economy has yet to fully recover from the effects of the Great Recession of 2007-09," Pew said—but more than that, it is a reflection of rising income inequality.
The report continues: The current and future status of the American middle class continues to be a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign. Moreover, new economic research suggests that a struggling middle class could be holding back the potential for future economic growth. The national trend is clear—the middle class is losing ground as a share of the population, and its share of aggregate U.S. household income is also declining.
With fewer families in the middle tier, the gap between rich and poor is widening, the report found, with the share of adults in lower-income tiers rising in 160 areas. The report follows a previous Pew analysis which found that for the first time in more than 40 years, the middle class is no longer the majority in America.
Read more: http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/05/12/wealthy-surge-us-poor-and-middle-class-incomes-have-gone-backward
34 replies
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...a reminder that the economy has yet to fully recover from the effects of the Great Recession of 2007-09...
The one that Bush created AND left Obama with? That just goes to show you how great it was!
rocktivity
The one that Bush created AND left Obama with? That just goes to show you how great it was!
rocktivity
... Once you understand that, the attacks about Bernie’s returns, tax rate and deductions look very much like swift-boat style attempts to attack his strength and distract attention from his opponent.
So what does oligarchic income look like?
Income inequality: Candidates for the Democratic party nomination
The Clintons income of $28 million for 2014 is 136 times Sanders’ income for the same period. And the Sanders are doing pretty well, they had income and Social Security benefits that totaled over 200k last year, putting them in the top 5% of Americans. However, the Clintons’ income of $28 million place them in a different league entirely. The numbers may seem abstract, so I’ve graphed them. Sanders’ income is less than 1% of what the Clintons made in 2014. Where did the $28 million come from?
2014 BILL HILLARY
SPEECHES $9,730,000 $10,492,000
CONSULTING $6,417,475
AUTHOR $36,442 $5,563,867
Tax returns and an oligarchic presidency:
http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/5/12/1525535/-Tax-returns-and-an-oligarchic-presidency
Why settle for either Oligarch?
[link:
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Surely someone rich should have dribbled on me just a little bit by now. Isn't that how it is supposed to work?
Now...
http://money.cnn.com/2016/04/26/news/economy/middle-class-to-homeless/index.html?sr=cnnmoneybin043016middle-class-to-homeless0900vodtop
More of the same or something different? That's what people are facing.
We have no problems that a little isolationism - walls, tariffs and travel bans - won't cure.
Sure it never worked for us in the past. Sure FDR has to 'fix' our last experiment with isolationism. Sure that's not how modern progressive countries support their middle class. But, hey, it sounds good. My republican base loves my "America First" isolationist rhetoric. And I am all about providing scapegoats rather than solutions. What's not to like?
