The 2022 midterms, scheduled for November 8 will finally give voters a chance to express their economic angst at the ballot box. Or they could choose to look deeper and arrive at the right reason for the rising prices and whether it is truly linked to the stimulus check.
The economy is a pretty scary thing for American right now. With prices at an all-time high, people are employing every means to save a few dollars. With a combination of decades-high inflation, a volatile, and sinking stock market, a housing crunch, and an overall shortage of goods all around, Americans from coast to coast are fearful about their financial condition and the state of the economy.
Voters are set to decide whether the Republicans finally wrest control of the US Senate and House from the Democrats, as well as which party takes over the state houses across the US.
The anti-incumbency factor always comes into play. Traditionally the midterms have been a period of setback for the ruling party as voters generally prefer to go against the ruling party. They vote with their pocketbook in both the state gubernatorial contest and the federal elections.
Voters are pointing fingers, the stimulus checks apart. Voters believe that the Democrats were the reason the economy plummeted. They say that Biden and Democratic Governors crippled middle-class families and did not support small businesses. Many voters with no fixed political alignment think along the same lines and say that the economic situation will impact the way they vote.
Inflation is A Big Issue, Especially In The Absence Of A Stimulus Check
An overwhelming 82% of Americans consider inflation an extremely essential issue for the federal government to solve. And only 3 in 10 Americans support the job being done by President Biden on the economic front. Most believe that he is losing out in the fight to rein in prices.
The series of stimulus checks managed to keep Americans provided even in the severe economic downturn following the pandemic. it softened the blow of severe unemployment, reduced working hours, and the high price all around the economy with the stimulus checks that came in at regular intervals throughout the difficult months of the pandemic.
Charles Bullock, a Political scientist at Georgia University says that the economy will remain the top concern for most Americans this year. and it is understandable as they have been affected at key points such as gasoline and groceries.
And for the first time, Americans are facing a negative increase in wages in real terms despite a rise in wages.
The inflation has been a combination of various factors including the supply chain disruption linked to the worldwide shutdown, and the war in Europe which effectively shut down Russian oil to the western nations and led to an all-around spike in oil prices across the world.
US consumer prices were recorded at 8.3% higher in August compared to a year earlier, a slight decrease of 9.1% in June, which remains a four-decade record. but even then it is one of the highest ever. For most Americans, gasoline prices are a vital gauge for inflationary pressures. OPEC has recently announced production cuts. The OPEC is a group of 23 oil-exporting nations and this move is sure to again hit worldwide oil prices after a brief period of moderation.
Republican Propaganda Has Effectively Downplayed The Huge Impact Of The ARPA
Effective Republican propaganda has ensured that the stimulus check has taken the brunt of the blame despite the role, it has played in pulling millions out of poverty. The stimulus checks helped people put food on the table, saved them from homelessness, and ensured that they were saved from defaulting on their loans, mortgage, and credit card payments.
The stimulus checks also played a vital role in saving businesses from shutting down, as the amount helped small business owners continue paying their workers despite the total shutdown in operation for weeks, and in many cases for months.
The Rescue Plan Stimulus Check also saved the economy from a deep recession, something that the Democratic publicity machinery should have highlighted more leading to the elections. The act of sending money directly into the hands of low and moderate Americans ensured that the economy did not take a hit from a fall in sales.
A large portion of the money went into buying products and this ensured that the demand for goods did not flag through the pandemic, save for a few weeks when the shutdown was declared. This prevented the economy from slipping into a deep recession as seen during the great recession between 2007 and 2009.
On the contrary, the economy bounced back to normal and showed very strong and robust growth within weeks and the last two quarters of 2021 proved to be exceptionally high growth ones. Many states managed to report a huge budget surplus during this period.
This surplus also came in handy during the present inflation as states were able to give out state stimulus checks to residents without having to resort to Rescue Plan funds, which they could use for infrastructure development.
The Federal Reserve has stepped in to tame inflation and has sharply boosted interest rates, which has led to squeezing most credit card holders and prospective homebuyers.
For most Americans, the price of gasoline is a key measure of inflationary pressure, as it affects every other price. Experts say that the economy will have a major impact on next month’s elections. The Republicans have effectively used inflation to put the Democrats on the mat.
The Democratic Party machinery has misdirected their efforts and concentrated on the abortion issues which did not affect the majority of the population.
In an alarming sign for the Democrats, a Gallup poll released in October showed that 51% of Americans surveyed said that think that the Republicans can do a better job with the economy. This when compared with only 41% for Democrats gives a grim picture for President Biden going into the midterms as this is the widest gap reported by Gallup in over 3 decades.
The outcome of the midterms will determine if President Biden has the freedom in the next two years of his presidency to enact the major remaining portion of his Stimulus Check agenda. A Republican takeover of Congress will effectively put an end to that.
