Not Better Off
Not long ago in this space, I noted the famous Reagan closing question, “Are you better off now than you were four years ago?,” along with some numbers of 2020 vs. 2024 for comparison.
Keep in mind, if you are expecting government to make you better off, we’re in a lot of trouble. It’s not government’s job to improve our personal lots in life. But it’s also not government’s job to get in the way of our own initiative and path toward success. Rarely is my personal answer to the “are you better off” question directly tied to government–it’s usually tied to me as an individual, as it should be.
And “better off” is subjective; we often think of it as meaning economically, but it really means overall–regarding money, safety, security, etc.
But when figuring out if government is on the right track or not, the question asked quadrennially is helpful. Gallup has surveyed Americans on that topic since 1984–forty years. The numbers over time are interesting.
For example, the only time a majority of Americans said they were better off was four years ago, in 2020–55 percent of us said we were better off, with only 33 percent saying worse off. I’ll let you conspiracy theorists chew on that one for a minute.
That same survey shows that in the past, the number of folks saying “not better off” has only exceeded those who thought they were better off one time–that was in 1992, and Bill Clinton unseated George H.W. Bush that year.
This year–the same pattern as in 1992. Back then only 38 percent said we were better off, with 46 percent saying worse off. Now, only 39 percent say they are better off, and for the first time, a majority–52 percent–say worse off. And it’s a stark choice, with fewer than 10 percent–for the only time ever–saying things are just the same.
So again, keeping in mind that we each control our own destinies far more than if we relied on government…only 39 percent of us say we are better off now than four years ago, and 52 percent say worse off.
If the election is “all about the feels,” as the kids apparently say…those “feels” are backed up by numbers–and they don’t add up well for the party now in power.
