Dear readers: What’s new?
This question comes up a lot. Sometimes as greeting — What’s new? — but sometimes it’s a reminder to look around and see what’s changed. Turns out it’s also an easy way to measure our elected leaders. Let’s have a look.
In the past year:
What’s new for the economy:
• More jobs created in first year (6.4 million) than combined 12 years of Bush and Trump.
• Unemployment dropped from 6.3 percent to 3.9 percent.
• Jobless claims down 74 percent, lowest since 1969.
• Private company wages up 2.4 percent; disposable income up 3 percent.
• America’s economy improved more in Biden’s first 12 months than any President during the past 50 years.
— Bloomberg’s Winkler
What’s new for workers?
• America’s Rescue Plan supported workers and their families: Clay County received more than $2.2 million new money, $1,400 direct checks for many residents, extended $300/week unemployment benefits, provided rent supplement and lowered taxes through the child tax credit.
• Health care extended as 4.6 million newly enrolled in Affordable Health Care.
• Minimum wage raised to $15 for federal contract workers.
How about help with COVID?
• Passed $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill. When Biden took office, fewer than 1 percent of Americans were fully vaccinated — now, after 537 million doses given, 63 percent are fully vaccinated and at-home tests, masks and shots are available at no cost.
• Funds provided for kindergarten through 12th schools, hospitals and nutrition assistance for children.
What else?
There’s plenty. A few examples:
• Help for equipment owners who want to do their own repairs without voiding warranty protection plans; United States rejoined the Paris Climate Accord; United States image abroad rebounded after steep decline during Trump years. — Pew Research
So, no matter how you look at it, the record shows that the president has delivered across many of the key issues — the economy, jobs, COVID — facing our country. What’s new is that we have a president who is protecting our workers while rebuilding our economy. Truth matters and that’s not new.
Lou Lanwermeyer
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