Search
AI-powered search, human-powered content.
scroll to top arrow or icon

{{ subpage.title }}

Jess Frampton

Secret sauce of the boom: immigration

The riddle of recovery: Is the economy broken, or is it booming? And is there a secret accelerant no elected official wants to talk about?

Turns out, how folks perceive the economy is often tied more closely to how they vote than to reality. Donald Trump's supporters argue the economy is a disaster of debt and inflation, made worse by an immigration nightmare playing out at the borders. To prove their case, they wander into the Cherry Orchard of Convenient Stats and pick a few choice numbers to make their case.

  • US debt has passed $34 trillion and will exceed the dangerous 99% debt-to-GDP ratio.
  • Between 60%-78% of US households are living paycheck to paycheck, depending on the survey.
  • Credit card debt has hit record levels, with 50% of consumers unable to pay off their monthly bills.
  • Food prices are going up even as inflation is down, rising over 2.2% from last year, according to the Consumer Price Index.
  • Big layoffs are hitting the tech, financial, retail, media, and energy sectors.
  • Home affordability: Most people with an average income can no longer afford a home, which in most cities now requires an income of over $100,000.
Read moreShow less
Countdown to the (possibly contested) US election
Ian Bremmer: Countdown to the (Possibly Contested) US Election | Quick Take | GZERO Media

Countdown to the (possibly contested) US election

Ian Bremmer's Quick Take:

Normalcy is incrementally coming to the United States, if not yet to a lot of developing markets, but certainly to Europe, certainly to China. And I haven't spent a lot of time talking about the US election yet, certainly nothing close to the media coverage. I thought I would today because we've got 99 days until November 3rd. You say 100 days yesterday, sounds like a bigger deal, but that's only because we have a base 10 numeric system. If we had a base three numeric system, 99 days out would be pretty meaningful, right? But no, I thought let's finally, right, we've got these massive, incredibly expensive, billions of dollars spent, a year and a half of the entire process, I mean, by far a greater subversion of democracy, the way the US elections are held than any other advanced industrial democracy in the world. We all know it. Democrats, Republicans, people sick of the party system. We all recognize nothing can be done about it. It's fantastic for special interests that spend an immense amount of money trying to ensure that candidates do their bidding. But now that we are only 99 days out, political polls really do start to matter. We know who the candidates are on both sides. We don't yet have the V.P. on the Biden side. But still, I mean, we're pretty close. 100 days out, 99 days out, you feel like you can start paying attention.

Read moreShow less
Meet Jon Lieber, our new host of US Politics In 60 Seconds
Jon Lieber Hosts US Politics In 60 Seconds | GZERO Media

Meet Jon Lieber, our new host of US Politics In 60 Seconds

Presidential race, pandemic, protests... Sometimes the news cycle moves so quickly that it's hard to make sense of it all.

Meet Jon Lieber, U.S. Managing Director for Eurasia Group. With extensive experience on Capitol Hill, he's advised senior elected officials and covered policy for years. Join him, every week, as he cuts through the noise and shares updates on what you need to know in just one minute. This is "U.S. Politics In 60 Seconds."

Subscribe to our free newsletter, GZERO Daily

Latest