THE SHOW NOTES: Live by Bidenomics. Die by Bidenomics.
Welcome! ProPublica published another baseless hit piece on Clarence Thomas but seems to ignore anything related to the Bidens.
NEW: An anti-corruption presidential candidate was assassinated in Ecuador.
LOL: Federal judge orders Southwest Airlines attorneys to attend ‘religious-liberty training’ from conservative group - CNN
HEADLINE: Scientist admits the ‘overwhelming consensus’ on the climate change crisis is ‘manufactured’ - NY Post
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Inflating Bidenomics
As the White House continues to push the benefits of Bidenomics, inflation for July jumped more than expected according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Consumer Price Index - a closely watched index that tracks the price of everyday goods and services - reports that inflation increased by 3.2% last month versus a year earlier.
Why this matters: While inflation was up from 3% in June, the sticky CPI report leaves the door open for the Fed to hike rates again next month. For perspective, restaurant prices were up 7.1% and transportation prices were up 9% from a year prior.
In the weeds: Bloomberg reports that 90% of the inflation reported last month was directly tied to housing or rent. Shelter costs are a lagging indicator that is widely known to be several months behind as multiple reports note rent is slightly coming down in some parts of the country.
However, consider this housing stat: The 30-year mortgage rate was 2.98% and the median home price was $294K just three years ago. Thanks to the COVID housing boom and soaring interest rates, the current 30-year rate is 7.39% and the median home costs $410K. To make matters worse, middle-class home buyers are facing the worst housing market in history with only 23% of available listings within their price range.
Troubling: Americans are tapping into their 401(k)’s in order to make ends meet in troubling new data from Bank of America. The number of people who made a hardship withdrawal surged by 36% in Q2 of 2023 vs Q2 of 2022. Here’s the line from the Boston Herald that stood out to me:
If you’re a working person in Biden’s America you can’t catch a break.
Bonus: The average American male worker needs to work 60+ weeks a year (out of 52) in order to afford a year's worth of major expenses for a family of four. Go read the trend on Twitter.