The resilience of America’s job creators is amazing. In the face of a looming recession and crippling
inflation
, businesses added another
311,000 jobs to the economy in February
, according to the latest jobs report. The details of Friday’s jobs report, however, should give the public pause because it reflects the fragility of the U.S.
economy
under the failed presidency of Joe Biden.
While adding jobs to the economy is almost always cause for celebration, thanks to Biden’s policy of printing money like it grows on trees, the strong jobs report comes with a catch. It will mean higher interest rates, future unemployment, and economic misery for the public.
JEROME POWELL
’
S PAUL VOLCKER MOMENT?
Take, for example, the February consumer price index, which came in at an unacceptably high rate of 6.0%. The White House has tried to downplay this number by pointing to the strong job market and decreasing inflation rates, but it fails to realize that inflation compounds. February’s 6.0% inflation rate comes on top of the inflation rate from February 2022, which was 7.9%. That means that, compared to February 2021, inflation is running at nearly 14%.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics offers more dire news for consumers: The cost of food at home increased 10.2% this past year, electricity increased 13.3%, shelter (rent) increased 8.1%, and transportation services increased 14.6%. These are all items that are critical to working Americans and drive a significant portion of their household budgets.
Inflation is weighing heavily on the economy and driving many people into a tight financial corner. The housing market, car repossession rates, and credit card debt are all showing signs of an economy teetering on the brink.
Home price gains have “been weakening every month since last summer, with the average home price nationwide now down 6% from its June peak as sales have dropped,” according to one report. We likely won’t see a crash similar to that of the Great Recession since the majority of homeowners have fixed-rate
mortgages
locked in below 5%. But home
foreclosures
are beginning to increase as more and more families can no longer afford to pay their mortgage rates.
Car payments, too, are becoming more and more unaffordable. In December, “the percentage of subprime auto borrowers who were at least 60 days late on their bills rose to 5.67%, up from a seven-year low of 2.58% in April 2021,” per
Bloomberg
.
To add insult to injury, people are having to use their credit cards or dip into their retirement savings to pay for necessities. Total credit card
debt
hit a record $930.6 billion at the end of 2022, an 18.5% spike from a year earlier. Hardworking people are paying nearly 20% interest on credit card debt simply to meet day-to-day bills. Beyond that, a record number of people tapped into their 401(K) plans last year for so-called
hardship withdrawals
.
Biden’s economy is a disaster of his own making. Any first-year economics student knows you cannot simply print money with wild abandon, distribute that money recklessly, incentivizing them not to work, kill the domestic energy market, and expect that things will be fine. It is time to replace the Biden regime with an administration that understands how the economy works and will deliver for hardworking Americans.
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Jim Nelles is a supply chain consultant based in Chicago. He has served as a chief procurement officer, chief supply chain officer, and chief operations officer for multiple companies.
