The polls published by the mainstream media all say that the presidential race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is extremely close.
The money race is not so close. In the big money competition between the billionaires, the Harris campaign had raised more than $1 billion as of Oct. 9, three times as much as the Trump campaign had raised. While billionaire Elon Musk has made a public show of buying into Trump, Harris is still getting most of the big money from the billionaires and millionaires so far.
Trump could win anyway.
In the U.S., the Electoral College decides the presidential election, not the popular vote. Harris could win the popular vote — though it’s not guaranteed — yet still lose to Trump in the electoral college.
This system has dominated presidential elections this century. In 2000, Al Gore received more votes than George W. Bush, but the Supreme Court intervened and gave Bush the Electoral College selection. In 2016, Hillary Clinton received almost three million more votes than Donald Trump, but the Electoral College gave Trump the presidency.
Donald Trump is counting on the Electoral College system to put him back in the White House. (Read more about the Electoral College from 2016 when it gave Trump the presidency in “Black voter suppression near 1950s level.”)
Because of the restrictions imposed by the Electoral College system, the presidential election is now said to hinge on just six “swing states” — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Nevada. These states will essentially override all votes in the rest of the country.
Enforce an Israeli ceasefire now
Harris could win these “swing states” if the Biden administration would enforce an Israeli ceasefire right now. Instead, Harris has repeatedly declared that she supports Israel’s war. That’s commonly known as support for genocide.
Nobody missed the fact that when Israel escalated its war, expanding into Lebanon, Biden responded by increasing the delivery of weapons systems and, for the first time, openly deploying U.S. troops in support of the expanded war.
When hurricanes Helene and Milton hit the Southeast, devastating Florida and the Appalachian region of North Carolina, there was no similar response. FEMA responded, but more was needed. There was no bonus equivalent to the $billions in bunker-buster bombs going for hurricane relief.
Harris’ militarism and enthusiasm for Israel’s war are costing her votes in the swing states, where a majority support an immediate ceasefire and an end to the war.
During an interview on ABC News’ “The View” on Oct. 8, when asked if she would have approached anything differently than President Biden, Vice President Harris said that “there is not a thing that comes to mind.”
Any worker watching the show might have said “Wow” and politely changed the channel. Many likely cursed the TV screen.
Most feel it is a recession
Most working people think that the economy is in a recession. It certainly feels that way; there is no need for data analysis or AI to figure that out.
Even though inflation is beginning to slow down, the price increases are cumulative, meaning things still cost much more than they did back in 2019 — and prices continue to rise. The price of a Big Mac has gone up 21% since 2019, and it’s expected to go higher. McDonald’s says it has to raise prices more because meat prices continue to rise.
One of the primary drivers of inflation is military spending. There were inflation crises during World Wars I and II, as well as the Korean and Vietnam wars. Behind the inflation today, with the U.S./NATO proxy war against Russia in Ukraine, the U.S.-armed and -funded war on Gaza, and the increasing war buildup in Taiwan, is the trillion dollar annual war budget and a national debt of $34.38 trillion.
Wages stagnant
Rising prices have hit working-class wages hardest. While there are fewer middle-income jobs available, inflation is biting hard even for those who still have these jobs.
Wages have increased slightly, but purchasing power has decreased. Stagnant wages are a concern, especially for many young people who are struggling to find employment.
The official poverty rate has increased every year of Biden’s term in office. Currently, 25% of seniors are attempting to get by on $15,000 or less. They can’t afford to pay for essential services, including prescription medications, healthcare, and other fundamental necessities.
High interest rates have put the possibility of home ownership out of reach for most working people. But rising rents make any housing harder to get and keep. Homelessness has reached record levels, with nearly a million homeless every night, many without shelter. This is the highest number of homeless people ever documented in the U.S.
As of August 2024, credit card debt in the U.S. is $1.14 trillion, a 5.8% increase from the previous year and $215 billion higher than the previous record set in 2019. Credit card delinquency is rising, and many are overextended.
Millions of workers (at least 20 million) had full-time jobs earning less than the official poverty level for a family of four (that’s $29,950). Many workers hold two jobs to try to make ends meet. Good jobs are not available; most of the jobs created during Biden’s years have been low-pay, non-union service jobs.
Another 3 million workers have lost their jobs due to hurricanes or other natural disasters in the last year. FEMA assistance primarily goes to businesses and infrastructure; a fraction goes to job assistance, which is hard to impossible to get.
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