The Triumph of Bidenomics!

[essentialsaltes]

Weekly jobless claims rise to highest level since August​

And yet, the overall joblessness rate has been under 4% for 27 consecutive months... a streak last seen in the 1960s.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Another great report on the effects of Bidenomics -

MSN

Weekly jobless claims rise to highest level since August​

Good job Joe

Looks like we're back up to numbers seen in large chunks of the Trump years:

Report r539cy, Employment & Training Administration (ETA) - U.S. Department of Labor

The article doesn't say, but I believe those are seasonally adjusted numbers, so in the link I provided, that would be the "SA" column under "Initial Claims." According to the DOL, we had weeks with 231k+ claims for virtually all of 2017 and Jan 2018, March 2020 onward, and a handful of individual weeks in between.

The last six months or so have been as low as the best periods of Trump's tenure.
Good job Joe.

 

[QvQ]

And every day, another personal reminder of Bidenomics
I have to drill a new water well.
The price of the pipe has doubled since Biden took office
That is double what I would have paid 3 years ago.
That is thousands of dollars more for the well.
As a monthly reminder, my grocery bill has more than doubled.
And my savings lost 20% of value.
This is the Daily Dose of Bidenomics
This is why people are not listening to all the good news about Biden's economy.
Everyday, another dose of double the price.

 

[iluvatar5150]

And every day, another personal reminder of Bidenomics
I have to drill a new water well.
The price of the pipe has doubled since Biden took office
That is double what I would have paid 3 years ago.

Steel is a global commodity. What did Biden do to impact steel prices?

As a monthly reminder, my grocery bill has more than doubled.

Doubled?

Increased 30-50%? Sure. But doubled?

And my savings lost 20% of value.

Why did your savings lose 20% of its value? Did you keep your cash stuffed under your mattress? Even a HYSA is paying 4-5% these days. I just bought a car and put no money down because the 3.99% interest rate of the loan is less than what my bank account is paying.

 

[QvQ]

Why did your savings lose 20% of its value?

Everyone's money lost 20% of value.
When Biden took office, $100 was $100
Now that $100 is worth $80 (20% inflation.)
Any asset you have lost 20% of value.
Even if the asset gained in value, it would have to exceed 20% before it actually gained.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Everyone's money lost 20% of value.
When Biden took office, $100 was $100
Now that $100 is worth $80 (20% inflation.)
Any asset you have lost 20% of value.

No, a static pile of cash will have lost 20% of its value. Other asset valuations are all over the place. The S&P500, for example, is up 36% (not adjusted for inflation) since Biden took office. My house value is harder to gauge, but I wouldn't be surprised if it were up around 20-25% over that time.

Even if the asset gained in value, it would have to exceed 20% before it actually gained.

Yeah, that's why you put your money in an investment vehicle that will grow. Even Treasury Bonds start at 4.45% now. After 3 years, that'll have you up 14% (not adjusted for inflation).

 

[QvQ]

No, a static pile of cash will have lost 20% of its value. Other asset valuations are all over the place. The S&P500, for example, is up 36% (not adjusted for inflation) since Biden took office. My house value is harder to gauge, but I wouldn't be surprised if it were up around 20-25% over that time.

"Not adjusted for inflation"
And if you are getting 14%,
OK. 100 x 14% = $114
That is not 20% which is not even keeping pace with inflation.

The cost of pipe is supposedly because of the price and availability of raw materials.
PPI
February 2020 118.60
March 2024 143.69

That is an increase of 25% and it is higher than the CPI.
Then there are shipping costs which are rising dramatically.
The shipping cost has increased, in addition to the already inflated costs, by 21% to the East Coast to 38% to the West Coast just in the last few months.

Bidenomics does increase the demand for pipe in all that infrastructure spending. The government will pay any inflated price, not considering cost, and that drives the prices up to the consumer.

 

[SimplyMe]

"Not adjusted for inflation"
And if you are getting 14%,
OK. 100 x 14% = $114
That is not 20% which is not even keeping pace with inflation.

The cost of pipe is supposedly because of the price and availability of raw materials.
PPI
February 2020 118.60
March 2024 143.69

That is an increase of 25% and it is higher than the CPI.
Then there are shipping costs which are rising dramatically.
The shipping cost has increased, in addition to the already inflated costs, by 21% to the East Coast to 38% to the West Coast just in the last few months.

Bidenomics does increase the demand for pipe in all that infrastructure spending. The government will pay any inflated price, not considering cost, and that drives the prices up to the consumer.

Odd that you select February 2020, when Trump was still President, rather than February 2021, when he was out of office. The thing that keeps being ignored is that the inflation was largely due to the Pandemic, which falls on Trump's Presidency, though inflation hit all first world nations and not just the US. While the inflation was an issue, the US suffered less inflation and it ended much more quickly because of Biden.

 

[iluvatar5150]

"Not adjusted for inflation"
And if you are getting 14%,
OK. 100 x 14% = $114
That is not 20% which is not even keeping pace with inflation.

I know. That was Treasury bonds, which are among the lowest-yield investments out there.

The cost of pipe is supposedly because of the price and availability of raw materials.
PPI
February 2020 118.60
March 2024 143.69

That is an increase of 25% and it is higher than the CPI.

Somebody else noted that you chose the wrong year, but that doesn't matter all that much because the difference between Jan 2020 and Jan 2021 wasn't that big. The overall PPI went up about 2.5% while the PPI for steel pipe went up about 10%.

Producer Price Index by Industry: Iron and Steel Pipe and Tube Manufacturing from Purchased Steel: Iron and Steel Pipes and Tubes, from Purchased Iron and Steel

Graph and download economic data for Producer Price Index by Industry: Iron and Steel Pipe and Tube Manufacturing from Purchased Steel: Iron and Steel Pipes and Tubes, from Purchased Iron and Steel (PCU3312103312100) from Jan 1967 to Mar 2024 about iron, purchase, steel, PPI, industry...

fred.stlouisfed.org

Producer Price Index by Commodity: All Commodities

Graph and download economic data for Producer Price Index by Commodity: All Commodities (PPIACO) from Jan 1913 to Mar 2024 about commodities, PPI, inflation, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

fred.stlouisfed.org

Then there are shipping costs which are rising dramatically.
The shipping cost has increased, in addition to the already inflated costs, by 21% to the East Coast to 38% to the West Coast just in the last few months.

Bidenomics does increase the demand for pipe in all that infrastructure spending. The government will pay any inflated price, not considering cost, and that drives the prices up to the consumer.

You can't pin the cost of pipe on Biden. His infrastructure bill wasn't even signed until mid-November 2021. As you can see from the FED chart I posted, the price of pipe had already been spiking for a year at that point, peaking in Feb 2022. Since then, it's retreated about halfway to where it was when Biden was elected.

 

[QvQ]

where it was when Biden was elected.

Fact remains, the cost of pipe has doubled.
The grocery bill has gone up from $250 to $450 a month.

20% is not a joke. It is the highest it has been in a century and it isn't coming down.
It doesn't matter to government workers or some strong unions who get the colas and the big pay raises but it matters a great deal to the average person who has 20% less money to spend. That is 1/5 pay cut.
IT is an every day fact to the majority of Americans.
The average person is not impressed by all the government jobs created or the DJIA.
The price of bananas is what impresses the local folks.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Fact remains, the cost of pipe has doubled.
The grocery bill has gone up from $250 to $450 a month.

20% is not a joke. It is the highest it has been in a century and it isn't coming down.
It doesn't matter to government workers or some strong unions who get the colas and the big pay raises but it matters a great deal to the average person who has 20% less money to spend. That is 1/5 pay cut.
IT is an every day fact to the majority of Americans.
The average person is not impressed by all the government jobs created or the DJIA.
The price of bananas is what impresses the local folks.

I understand all of this, but pinning it on Biden is mostly dumb. As has already been pointed out, virtually every country saw an inflation spike due to the pandemic and the US weathered it better than most. There’s no reason to think Trump would’ve done any better, especially given how much he wants to lean on the Fed to lower interest rates. We’re all lucky the pandemic didn’t happen any earlier and give Trump more time to bungle the response.

 

[QvQ]

As has already been pointed out, virtually every country saw an inflation spike due to the pandemic and the US weathered it better than most.

Biden has spent profligately and inflation has responded accordingly. Using Congressional Budget Office estimates, Biden will have spent $7.9 trillion above 2019’s pre-pandemic outlay level, run $7.4 trillion in deficits and raised federal debt to $27.9 trillion (99 percent of GDP)."

So it wasn't Biden, it was Covid?
Covid was a while ago.
Now it is the war in the middle east?

Biden is just a poor victim of circumstances beyond his control.

However, you are quick to blame any economic turmoil during Trump's term as President Trump being directly responsible.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Biden has spent profligately and inflation has responded accordingly. Using Congressional Budget Office estimates, Biden will have spent $7.9 trillion above 2019’s pre-pandemic outlay level, run $7.4 trillion in deficits and raised federal debt to $27.9 trillion (99 percent of GDP)."

Yeah? And? That doesn’t negate anything I said.

So it wasn't Biden, it was Covid.
Covid was a while ago.

And inflation went under 4% a year ago and has stayed under 3.5% nearly the entire time since.

That has not excused any President as you are so quick to blame any economic turmoil during Trump's term as Trump being directly responsible

What are you talking about? For one thing, I don’t recall any turmoil from then, but for another thing, most of the center/leftists on here, myself included, are quick to point out how no president has much influence on these things, unless there’s a very specific policy execution that we can point to.

No, the way these usually go is that, as in this thread, the conservatives assign credit/blame to the president for conditions that occur during their administration, and the libs respond by posting “squiggly line” charts and arguing that the conservatives are wrong on the facts and don’t really know what they’re talking about.

 

[Pommer]

No, the way these usually go is that, as in this thread, the conservatives assign credit/blame to the president for conditions that occur during their administration, and the libs respond by posting “squiggly line” charts and arguing that the conservatives are wrong on the facts and don’t really know what they’re talking about.

Well there were the tariffs that President Trump had implemented in 2018…imports of Chinese steel costed more and allowed domestic producers to sell at a higher price too to maintain profitability. The Biden Administration has largely left the tariffs in place.

(I had noticed the 500 ft roll of “heavy duty” aluminum foil at Sam’s/Costco went from about $18 to ~$35 since ‘21 but I’m not laying this at the feet of the President.)

 

[QvQ]

(I had noticed the 500 ft roll of “heavy duty” aluminum foil at Sam’s/Costco went from about $18 to ~$35 since ‘21 but I’m not laying this at the feet of the President.)

The policies of the President do affect the price of bananas.
Oil is a prime example. That was low under Trump, high under Biden.
Waste and corruption in government spending
There has been $7.5 Billion dollars spent on public EV chargers since 2021
How many have been built?
8
I will say that again $7.5 Billion = Eight chargers, again 8 chargers.

That is fueling inflation. All those trillions tossed in the street, where are those dollars?
I don't see any Trillions in my neighborhood
Where is all that money going?

Then you have the media blaring "Trump wants to cut social security"
Trump said he would cut Fraud and Waste in Social Security.
But we hates bad orange man. He no good!
Oh...what fraud and waste?

That is what a President can do. That is why Biden is getting the blame. Tossing tax dollars in the streets as involuntary tithes to his religion of global warming and "welcoming the stranger."

Forgiving student loans. Ignore the Supreme Court. Yeah, lets all just ignore the law. Just blow off Judges.
And he didn't give the money back to the people who already paid.
And he can't forgive the current students whose loans will come due in a few years.
Just bucks tossed in the street to buy a few votes.

What can a poor President do? Gee, don't blame Biden.

It is off topic but Biden genuflecting, blessing abortion during a pro-abortion rally is satanic.

 

[SimplyMe]

The policies of the President do affect the price of bananas.
Oil is a prime example. That was low under Trump, high under Biden.
Waste and corruption in government spending
There has been $7.5 Billion dollars spent on public EV chargers since 2021
How many have been built?
8
I will say that again $7.5 Billion Eight chargers, again 8 chargers.

That is fueling inflation. All those trillions tossed in the street, where are those dollars?
I don't see any Trillions in my neighborhood
Where is all that money going?

Then you have the media blaring "Trump wants to cut social security"
Trump said he would cut Fraud and Waste in Social Security.
But we hates bad orange. man. He no good!
Oh...what fraud and waste?

That is what a President can do. That is why Biden is getting the blame. Tossing tax dollars in the streets as involuntary tithes to his religion of global warming and "welcoming the stranger."

It is off topic but Biden genuflecting, blessing abortion during a pro-abortion rally is satanic.

Sorry, your claims are largely false. First, a lot more than 8 chargers (or even charging stations) have been build since 2021 -- I believe over 1000. Granted, only 8 charging stations may have been completed using funding under the infrastructure act (known as the New Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program or NEVI), which is at least 4 times more chargers. Second, most of that money has not been spent yet, nor could any of it be spent prior to last year, and most has not yet been spent, with 2026 to be the final year projects are funded. Only a limited amount of money is authorized to be spent each year, it wasn't all made available last year.

One further point, the money is being spent by the individual states, not by the federal government (though they do approve of the state plans), to get chargers where they are needed on a local level. If you have more questions about the project, this website has information, including the amount authorized per year and that the various state plans were approved for 2023 and 2024, with approval for the next two years still pending. Information about the specific state projects is available from the states.

And, to be clear, if the states do not submit proposals for their share of the money then the money is not spent, it isn't just given out without an approved project to spend it on. It takes a fair amount of time, currently, to build out charging stations; it requires finding a suitable location, acquiring the land, ordering the necessary high power hook ups from the local electric utility, getting the needed hardware for the chargers, etc. It is a major building project and requires a fair amount of lead time and, worse, Tesla's firing of their Supercharger team also has introduced delays into some of the projects.

 

[Pommer]

The policies of the President do affect the price of bananas.
Oil is a prime example. That was low under Trump, high under Biden.
Waste and corruption in government spending
There has been $7.5 Billion dollars spent on public EV chargers since 2021
How many have been built?
8
I will say that again $7.5 Billion = Eight chargers, again 8 chargers.

That is fueling inflation. All those trillions tossed in the street, where are those dollars?
I don't see any Trillions in my neighborhood
Where is all that money going?

Then you have the media blaring "Trump wants to cut social security"
Trump said he would cut Fraud and Waste in Social Security.
But we hates bad orange man. He no good!
Oh...what fraud and waste?

That is what a President can do. That is why Biden is getting the blame. Tossing tax dollars in the streets as involuntary tithes to his religion of global warming and "welcoming the stranger."

Forgiving student loans. Ignore the Supreme Court. Yeah, lets all just ignore the law. Just blow off Judges.
And he didn't give the money back to the people who already paid.
And he can't forgive the current students whose loans will come due in a few years.
Just bucks tossed in the street to buy a few votes.

What can a poor President do? Gee, don't blame Biden.

It is off topic but Biden genuflecting, blessing abortion during a pro-abortion rally is satanic.

For a few hours, (in 2020) oil was negative, (if you had storage available, you could have gotten free oil and the ”seller” would have given you money to take it)!
President Trump worked a deal with the Saudis and OPEC to curtail production until 2022 to prop up America’s oil industry, (which was in danger of collapse).
Oil profits are WAY up, America is the world’s largest petroleum producer.

 

[QvQ]

And, to be clear, if the states do not submit proposals for their share of the money then the money is not spent, it isn't just given out without an approved project to spend it on. It takes a fair amount of time, currently, to build out charging stations; it requires finding a suitable location, acquiring the land, ordering the necessary high power hook ups from the local electric utility, getting the needed hardware for the chargers, etc.

Sorry, your claims are mostly false.
The Stage Coach Stations were about 30 miles apart
The Railroad followed the Stage Routes, a whistle stop every 30 miles
And Interstate Gas Stations are on the same pattern

We have had the basic pattern and the facilities since the Butterfield Stage in 1858
Under an Inefficient administration, the arguments you presented are nothing but excuses for administrative waste and corruption.
And in the end, that first $7.5 Billion will evaporate and it will take another $7.5 B build the next 8 charging stations.

Every rest area in America has electricity.
Rest areas are 12 to 30 miles apart
The land, electrical hookups are already Right There.

And there are towns in between rest areas which most certainly have electricity.
There are three stretches of road that I know of in the US where one gas station is 100 miles from the next.
And there are Big Signs stating "No Gas for 100 miles " because it is so unusual.
So we have gas stations less than one hundred miles apart in this country.

Surely, wherever there is a gas station, there could be a charging station
Can't an EV run at least 30 to 100 miles between charges?

For a few hours, (in 2020) oil was negative, (if you had storage available, you could have gotten free oil and the ”seller” would have given you money to take it)!

That is why our efficient and hard working government topped off the strategic oil reserves for free.
Oh no, Biden drained the Strategic Oil Reserves in 2022..
"In 2022, the administration of President Joe Biden announced a sale of 180 million barrels of oil over six months from the reserve, the largest ever SPR sale,"
And much of that Reserve went to China.
It did keep the price of gas down during the election.

 

[Pommer]

Sorry, your claims are mostly false.
The Stage Coach Stations were about 30 miles apart
The Railroad followed the Stage Routes, a whistle stop every 30 miles
And Interstate Gas Stations are on the same pattern

We have had the basic pattern and the facilities since the Butterfield Stage in 1858
Under an Inefficient administration, the arguments you presented are nothing but excuses for administrative waste and corruption.
And in the end, that first $7.5 Billion will evaporate and it will take another $7.5 B build the next 8 charging stations.

Every rest area in America has electricity.
Rest areas are 12 to 30 miles apart
The land, electrical hookups are already Right There.

And there are towns in between rest areas which most certainly have electricity.
There are three stretches of road that I know of in the US where one gas station is 100 miles from the next.
And there are Big Signs stating "No Gas for 100 miles " because it is so unusual.
So we have gas stations less than one hundred miles apart in this country.

Surely, wherever there is a gas station, there could be a charging station
Can't an EV run at least 30 to 100 miles between charges?


That is why our efficient and hard working government topped off the strategic oil reserves for free.
Oh no, Biden drained the Strategic Oil Reserves in 2022..
"In 2022, the administration of President Joe Biden announced a sale of 180 million barrels of oil over six months from the reserve, the largest ever SPR sale,"
And much of that Reserve went to China.
It did keep the price of gas down during the election.

Well, vote for what’s-his-name and be done with it.

 

[NxNW]

There is 20% inflation since Biden took office.
That means every $100 you had in 2020 is worth $80 in 2024.
There is a 20% loss of income.

No, there is a loss of buying power. Inflation is part of capitalism.