Yellen’s Sleight of Hand to Vindicate Bidenomics

null Dec. 28, 2023 12:44 pm ETTreasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks in Washington, Dec. 14. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty ImagesTreasury Secretary Janet Yellen writes that “wages have risen more than prices since 2019” to justify her claim that “our economic position reflects actions the Biden administration has taken over the past three years” (“Bidenomics Is Working for the Middle Class,” op-ed, Dec. 21). The problem with this claim is that President Biden wasn’t in office a single day in 2019—or in 2020. From the beginning of 2019 to the end of 2020, with Donald Trump still in the White House, real weekly earnings rose by $69 (or 6.2%) and annual median income rose by $3,592. But from the beginning of the Biden administration to the third quarter of 2023, the last quarter for which we have data, real weekly earnings fell by more than $25 (or 2.1%), pushing real annual median income down by $1,306. Copyright ©2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7

A person who loves writing, loves novels, and loves life.Seeking objective truth, hoping for world peace, and wishing for a world without wars.

Opinion Dec 29, 2023 Add to Reading List

Yellen’s Sleight of Hand to Vindicate Bidenomics

null

Dec. 28, 2023 12:44 pm ET

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks in Washington, Dec. 14. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen writes that “wages have risen more than prices since 2019” to justify her claim that “our economic position reflects actions the Biden administration has taken over the past three years” (“Bidenomics Is Working for the Middle Class,” op-ed, Dec. 21).

The problem with this claim is that President Biden wasn’t in office a single day in 2019—or in 2020. From the beginning of 2019 to the end of 2020, with Donald Trump still in the White House, real weekly earnings rose by $69 (or 6.2%) and annual median income rose by $3,592. But from the beginning of the Biden administration to the third quarter of 2023, the last quarter for which we have data, real weekly earnings fell by more than $25 (or 2.1%), pushing real annual median income down by $1,306.