Self-Inflicted Wounds: The Shocks We Chose
How we're paying the price for tariffs, war, immigration, and a shredded safety net
Last week, I joined Mary Harris on Slate’s What’s Next podcast to discuss the July Jobs Report. I told her the truth: I’m worried.
Most economists expected modest growth last month. Instead, employers shed 23,000 jobs. Add in large downward revisions for May and June, and the U.S. economy added roughly 200,000 fewer jobs over the past three months than most economists previously believed (or hoped).
I don’t want to pretend to know where we’re headed. Anyone who claims to know where we are or where we’re going with any degree of precision is overconfident. The truth is, economists are always sailing through fog, but these numbers got my attention.
Mary and I dug into why jobs are so hard to count and why unemployment can remain low even when job growth stalls. We also discussed what it means for America that we slammed the brakes on population growth without much analysis of its macroeconomic consequences. (Yes, this is all about immigration.)
But here’s what frustrates me most: So much of our economic pain right now is self-inflicted. The United States chose a trade war, a war in Iran, abrupt immigration cutbacks, and a budget blowout. Those are choices that our elected leaders chose in our names. None of them were necessary.
And now regular folks are paying the price. They’re worried about work, losing food assistance, struggling to get healthcare, and watching prices outrun their paychecks.
Economics is never abstract. It’s about whether families can put dinner on the table and live with dignity.
That’s why I get up each morning… and worry some more.
If YOU are worried, then I’m double-worried!!! (Actually, I’ve been worried for quite a while, but I do keep hoping!)