this is a step forwards away from biden's messaging about job creation, which is probably what was killing him while he oversees three separate wars (and pretends there aren't any in the debates). the columnist is correct to point out that stimulating specific demand - whether it be in the form of free daycare money, free downpayment money, specific rent subsidies, etc - is just going to raise prices.
yet, harris wants to win some votes, so she's trying to buy some. i hear voters are on sale. this is good bargain hunting. what's a girl supposed to do?
there's a contradiction here. harris' policies are essentially designed for demographics she's going to win anyways. not only is it not a good economic policy, but it won't actually swing many voters, either.
she's got the right idea, but the implementation is all wrong, in both ways. this kind of stimulus, which is needed because we are entering a recession from the interest rate hikes, should go not to the middle classes but the working poor and the even poorer than that. further, these are the voters that harris is going to have the most difficulty with; they're the right people to try to bribe.
it's also worth noting that giving money to the poorest people also requires less handed out in total, because they don't need things like $25,000 tax breaks. my gross yearly income is about $17,000, canadian. a $5000 check would allow me to move out of a bad situation brought on by greedy new landlords. of course i don't live in the united states but you get the point.
there's a sweet spot to maximize economically if you're really lazer focused on the economy so you're not paying off debt, but a politician winning votes should be less concerned about that and just seeking to focus on voters with a relatively low floor.
there's a lot of ways to sell that, but the reality is that this recent round of inflation is the last straw in a process that has led to ever higher concentrations of wealth extracted from the poorest people. it's long overdue to reverse it, and it's probably at a breaking point where you have to.
i mean, just look at the other candidate.