Is the Economy Good or Bad?

So, the government just released some new data which shows that the economy is still rolling along — low unemployment, increase in real wages, inflation under control.

That being the case, how come a large majority of Americans still say that the economy’s for shit?

How do we explain what the social scientists refer to as ‘cognitive dissonance’ meaning that what people think isn’t backed up by the facts?

There are multiple answers to that question, all of which have some importance in this, an election year, and the fact that 2024 is not only an election year but a Presidential election year makes the results from polls about the economy more important than they otherwise might be.

First and foremost, just about any poll with any degree of political context has to be understood as reflecting a country which in terms of political parties and representation is divided almost equally in half.

What this means is that if someone answers the telephone and is asked his or her opinion on a touch-button political issue like the economy, their answer is going to probably reflect whether they want the current political incumbent and/or the incumbent political party to win or lose.

You show me one Trump supporter who’s willing to say that economy’s in good shape and I’ll show you…