WASHINGTON - January 27 - Next week’s State of the Union address will be delivered to an audience that has grown extremely wary about the economy. A Gallup poll this month found that over half of Americans rate the economy as “poor” or “fair” and expect it to get worse. Today’s distressing news about tepid GDP growth can only reinforce public worries.
Up to now, the administration has tried to address these anxieties by trying to persuade the American people that they are unfounded – and that the economic indicators tell a much more hopeful story than the polls show.
New analysis issued today by the Economic Policy Institute offers important context for journalists seeking to make sense of the wide gap between the administration’s rhetoric and public perceptions, as well as for a president seeking to regain public confidence in his ability to handle the economy.
“Why People Are So Dissatisfied with Today’s Economy,” an EPI issue brief, and a separate economic snapshot, both by research director Lee Price, provide the needed historical context for understanding today’s public discontents – and shows why the administration should be offering not just rhetoric, but a new direction in economic policy. Price’s issue brief, in Q&A format, examines five areas: job growth, unemployment, wages, the impact of tax cuts on jobs, and the impact of health care costs. Price's snapshot shows how ineffective tax cuts have failed to create private-sector job growth.
To view the issue brief, click here.
To view the snapshot, click here.
For more on EPI research director Lee Price, click here.
For interviews or more information, please contact EPI's communications department at (202) 775-8810 or news@epi.org.
For how to describe EPI, click here.
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