Political divisions are ugly, and those divisions have spilled over onto the Thanksgiving table. One study found that “partisan differences cost American families 62 million person-hours of Thanksgiving time.” Presumably those same differences are impacting the quality of family time throughout the year.
Time to count our blessings has become another opportunity to count our grievances.
Read the full story
The Biden-Harris administration has become synonymous with an economy in tatters. Americans are struggling with rising prices, stagnant wages, and increased obstacles to starting a business, buying a home or retiring. According to the Gallup Economic Confidence Index, Americans’ outlook on the economy from 2021 to 2024 has been negative.
Contrast this with the economic prosperity seen under the Trump administration. America enjoyed energy abundance, skyrocketing wages, a record number of startups and incredible stock market averages. A large part of this success can be credited to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), a tax cut for families and small businesses that fueled one of the strongest economies in decades.
Read the full story
More than 800,000 fewer native-born Americans are employed than last year as job gains among Americans continue to lag behind those of foreign-born workers, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The number of foreign-born workers employed increased by approximately 1.2 million year-over-year in September, while 825,000 fewer native workers were employed, BLS data shows. The large annual difference is in spite of the roughly 920,000 upward employment fluctuation for native-born workers in September compared to August, after a 1,325,000 drop from July to August.
Read the full story
A majority of surveyed American families are worried about inflation and are changing their summer vacation plans because of it, according to newly released polling data.
The poll, from Echelon Insights, found that “75% of parents say they are concerned about the rising cost of everyday purchases like food or gas.”
Read the full story
President Joe Biden’s recent action to address record-high gasoline prices will have a bare minimum impact on consumers, saving some American families a few dollars a month.
Biden issued an emergency waiver Tuesday allowing gas stations nationwide to sell gasoline with 15% ethanol (E15), pausing a federal environmental regulation that prohibits the corn-based biofuel mixture during the summer months to limit smog. American consumers are currently facing record-high pump prices and soaring inflation at levels not seen since 1981.
Read the full story
A new report estimated the annual cost of elevated inflation this year will be around $3,500 per household.
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, one of the nation’s leading business schools, released the report, which estimated much higher costs for American families because of inflation that has risen this year at the fastest rate in decades.
Read the full story
Millions of American families will begin to receive monthly cash payments Thursday as part of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that President Joe Biden signed into law in March.
The payments are an expansion of the Child Tax Credit, and will continue for a year before requiring congressional renewal. As many as 90% of American families are eligible to receive hundreds of dollars a month for each child they have, and some experts believe that the policy could ultimately cut child poverty in half.
Read the full story
Wednesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Tennessee State Senator Ferrell Haile to the newsmakers line to talk about his three top priorities as Senator which are children, families, and education in addition to the progress he’s made in the safe baby court.
Read the full story
President Joe Biden touted a key part of his education initiative Monday, pushing for two years of free community college nationwide, but some critics question the long-term efficacy of his plan.
Biden spoke at Tidewater Community College in Norfolk, Virginia, to promote his proposal, which would provide, among other things, $109 billion for two years of tuition-free community college.
“Do we want to give the wealthiest people in America another tax cut, or do you want to give every high school graduate the ability to earn a community college degree?” Biden asked during his speech, arguing that 12 years of schooling is not long enough in the modern economy. “That’s why the American Families Plan guarantees four additional years of public education for every person in America – two years of universal, high-quality pre-school and two years of free community college.”
Read the full story
America’s working families need allies, not obstacles.
As a mother and a Michigan small business owner, I vividly recall the anemic “recovery” we experienced under the Obama-Biden administration, which increased regulatory costs to a historic high of nearly $2 trillion a year — a tab paid in large part by hard working entrepreneurs like me.
Read the full story