The Obama Years

Household income is stuck in a ditch thanks to the Obama years as Investors Business Daily points out here:

But how’s this for bad news: Since the recession officially ended in July 2009, median household income has dropped by more than 4%, or nearly $2,000.

No wonder more than half of all Americans think we’re still in a recession. They aren’t just imagining things. For most, the paycheck recession really hasn’t subsided.

A major reason earnings are down is that fewer Americans are working. The Labor Department reports that the percentage of able-bodied, working-age Americans with a job is lower now than when Obama was sworn into office in 2009. If you’re not working, your wages and salaries can’t possibly rise.

This is the big political and policy opening for Republicans and the sensible counteroffer to Democrats’ infatuation with lifting the minimum wage. Why not start talking about policies that will raise the middle-class wage? To do that we need more businesses and more business investment so they can pay more to workers.

This isn’t happening now, in part because of higher taxes, ObamaCare anti-employment regulations like the 50-worker rule, and anti-natural gas, oil and coal regulatory policies that are keeping our fastest-growing industry from expanding even faster.

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

Preparing your investments and family for when disaster strikes.

E.J. Smith is the Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH, where he completed course-work in Practical and Defensive Handgun, Conceal Carry Pistol, Shotguns, Precision Scope Rifle and Kidnapping Prevention. E.J. plays a Yamaha Recording Custom drum set with Zilldjian cymbals. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zilldjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@youngresearch.com. Sign up here to receive all the best content from Richardcyoung.com each week.