The document discusses many issues facing Americans including declining economic opportunity, rising inequality, unaffordability of housing and education, and stagnating wages. It notes that income and wealth inequality are at crisis levels in the US, with the top 10% controlling over half of the country's wealth while the bottom 50% own just 1.5% of wealth. Other issues highlighted include high costs of living, lack of good-paying jobs, inadequate healthcare and education systems, and lack of social mobility. Overall, the document paints a picture of economic struggles for many Americans and a system that has failed to adapt to changing economic realities.

1. THE
WE NEED
SEARCHING FOR BETTER
MORALITY, JUSTICE, SOCIAL ORDER, AND A FAIR CHANCE

2. % saying they have ___ (of) trust and confidence in the
wisdom of American people in making political decisions
Very great/Good deal
Not very much/None at all
Note: Don't know responses not shown.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted March 20-25, 2019.

3. On important issues facing the country, most Republican
and Democratic voters … (%)
Not only disagree
over plans and
policies, but also
cannot agree on
basic facts
Can agree on basic
facts, even if they
often disagree over
plans and policies
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted March 20-25, 2019.

4. % who say that talking about politics with people they
disagree with is generally …
Interesting and informative
Stressful and frustrating

5. THE TALE OF TWO AMERICAS
PROGRESSIVE
LIBERALS
FAITH AND FLAG
CONSERVATIVES
81% say the U.S. is more divided than before the Pandemic
The worst members of
an out-group are the
lightning rods viewed
as prototypical, but the
truth is more nuanced.

6. The Republican Coalition
The Democratic Coalition

7. THE 2021 POLITICAL MAKEUP OF AMERICA
START YOUR QUIZ
Beyond Red vs. Blue The Political Typology

8. How politically diverse is your neighborhood?
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9. % who say _____ describes each party very or somewhat well

10. % who say members of the other party are a lot / some what more
_____ compared to other Americans.
Note: Partisans do not include those who lean to each party
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted June 27-July 4, 2022.

12. Ideological Caucuses of 117th Congress
Ideological congressional caucuses can represent a political party within a political party. In the United States
two-party dominant political system, these congressional caucuses help congregate and advance the ideals of a
more focused ideology within the two major relatively big tent political parties.
Democratic Caucuses - 222 Members:
• Blue Collar Caucus (BCC) – pro-labor and alter-globalization 14 members
• Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) – progressive and New Deal 95 members
• New Democrat Coalition (NDC) – centrist New Democrats 94 members
• Blue Dog Coalition (BDC) – conservative Democrats 19 members
Republican Caucuses - 254 Members:
• Republican Main Street Partnership (MSP) – centrist 52 members
• Republican Study Committee (RSC) – conservative 153 members
• Freedom Caucus (FC) – conservatives affiliated with the Tea Party movement 49 members
Problem Solvers Caucus - a group of 29 Democrats and 29 Republicans

13. PUBLIC TRUST IN U.S. GOVERNMENT
1964 - Vietnam War
1971 - Pentagon Papers
1972 - Watergate
1985 - Iran Contra
1998 - Clinton Impeachment
2001 - US Patriot ACT
2001 - Operation Stellar Wind
2002 - Advanced Interrogation
2003 - WMD Iraq Report
2008 - Financial Crisis
2013 - Snowden Disclosures
2014 - The Torture Report
2019 - The Afghanistan Papers
2019 – Trump’s two impeachments
2020 - “Big Lie” Election Plot
THE WELL-EARNED LOSS OF

14. MOST OF US STILL NOSTALGIC
FOR MUCH BETTER LEADERSHIP
Public Persuasion
Crisis Leadership
Economic Management
Moral Authority
International Relations
Administrative Skills
Relations with Congress
Vision / Setting an Agenda
Pursued Equal Justice For All
Performance Within Context of Times

15. Source: Edelman Trust Barometer

17. % who say each has a ___ effect on the way things in the country are going

18. ARE DEMOCRACY, AND OUR INSTITUTIONS
UP TO THE CHALLENGE?
Lots of people feel disgusted by the state of society. Trust in institutions plummeted.
Moral indignation is widespread. Contempt for established power is intense.
AMERICANS’ CONFIDENCE 2022 - GALLUP
Small Business - 68%
Military - 64%
The Police - 45%
Medical Systems - 38%
Churches or organized religion - 31%
Organized Labor - 28%
Public Schools - 28%
Banks - 27%
Large Technology Companies - 26%
Supreme Court - 25%
The Presidency - 23%
Newspapers - 16%
Criminal Justice Systems - 14%
Big Business - 14%
Television News - 11%
Congress - 7%

19. OCTOBER 21, 2021
THE SHARE OF AMERICANS WHO FEEL
U.S. SYSTEMS NEED MAJOR CHANGES OR
TO BE COMPLETELY REFORMED
85% Political
76% Healthcare
66% Economic

20. MAJOR POLICY ISSUES
% who say they strongly/somewhat agree with each party on the following policy issues

21. % who say ___ should be a top priority for the president and congress this year
Standing in the way of a better future is seventy-nine-year-old Joe Biden, a wafer-thin majority in Congress, a republican party
who's only agenda is to make Joe Biden fail and an extremely conservative supreme court.
Percent of All Americans

22. U.S. CONSUMER SENTIMENT INDEX

23. Even with job growth, there are signs that many employers are laying off workers or slowing hiring.
JOB OPENINGS ARE FALLING BUT REMAIN HIGH

24. Private-sector Unemployment is at 3.5% and returned to a 53 year low.
JOB CREATION REMAINS STRONG
Unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted Nonfarm payroll employment, seasonally adjusted

25. Total
Men, 20
years and
older
Women, 20
years and
older
16 to 19
years old White
Black or
African
American Asian
Hispanic or
Latino
Jan-20 63.4 71.7 59.2 36.3 63.3 62.8 63.9 67.8
Jul-22 62.1 69.9 58.3 35.8 61.9 62 64.9 65.7
https://www.bls.gov/charts/employment-situation/civilian-labor-force-participation-rate.htm
CIVILIAN LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION RATES
NOT YET RECOVERED TO PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS

26. NOMINAL HOURLY WAGES HAVE IMPROVED
IN THE TIGHT LABOR MARKET

27. MOST OF US HOPING FOR MUCH BETTER REAL WAGES
Watch the video
Americans' paychecks are bigger than 40 years ago, but their purchasing power has
hardly budged. When adjusted for inflation over time, Americans on average are only
making 12 cents more per hour than they did back in 1972. Satisfaction with wage
compensation at current jobs declined to 56.9 percent from 58.2 percent in July 2021.

28. 70.48%
$11.39 Trillion
Mortgage
9.28%
$1.50 Trillion
Auto Loan
5.50%
$890 Billion
Credit Card
9.83%
$ 1.59 Trillion
Student Loan
1.97%
$319 Billion
HE Revolving
Source: New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel/Equifax
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Aggregate household debt balances increased by $312 billion in the second quarter of 2022, a 2.0% rise from 2022 Q1.
Balances have increased by $2 trillion since the end of 2019, just before the pandemic recession.
2.90%
$ 470 Billion
Other
$16.159 TRILLION OF CONSUMER DEBT NOT HELPING

29. U.S. Consumer Spending 2012-2022
LIFE WAS ALREADY INCREASINGLY EXPENSIVE
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis
Consumer Spending increased to $13,916.87 Billion in the second quarter of 2022.
The median reported year-over-year increase in monthly nominal household spending rose
from 7.8 percent in April to 9.0 percent in August, its fifth consecutive increase since the
December 2020 survey.

30. HOME AFFORDABILITY INDEX
Source: National Association of Realtors Home Affordability Index

31. HOME VACANCY RATE

32. A 3.8 MILLION SINGLE FAMILY HOME SHORTFALL IS NOT HELPING

33. HOME PRICES ARE NOT HELPING

34. This year, 420,000 new apartments are expected nationwide.
Apartment completions last surpassed the 400,000-unit mark in 1972.
MORE PEOPLE WHO CAN”T AFFORD TO BUY ARE RENTING
AS CONSTRUCTION IS JUST STARTING TO CATCHUP

35. A RENTAL VACANCY RATE OF 5.6 NOT HELPING

36. RENTAL INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATION, AND
RENT INFLATION ARE NOT HELPING
Rental costs in the US are soaring at the fastest pace in more than three decades, surpassing a median
of $2,000 a month for the first time ever and pushing rents above pre-pandemic levels in most major cities.

37. IN JULY OF 2022, 50 PERCENT OF 18-29 YEAR OLDS
LIVING WITH THEIR PARENTS CAN NOT EVEN AFFORD
TO RENT THE AMERICAN DREAM

38. INFLATION, SHRINKFLATION AND GREEDFLATION NOT HELPING
Inflation in the U.S. would have been 6 percent instead of 9.1 percent at the end of 2021 without supply bottlenecks.

39. GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS STILL RECOVERING
Global Supply Chain Pressure Index
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Harper Petersen Holding GmbH; Baltic Exchange; IHS Markit; Institute for Supply Management; Haver Analytics;
HOW WE BROKE OUR SUPPLY CHAINS

40. 2021 U.S. OVERALL RANKING
24TH OF 168 COUNTRIES
40TH of 168 BASIC HUMAN NEEDS
FOUNDATIONS OF WELLBEING
24TH of 168
OPPORTUNITY
15TH of 168
GDP PER CAPITA
8TH of 163
https://www.socialprogress.org/?code=USA&tab=2
DOES THIS LOOK LIKE
ONE OF THE GREATEST COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD?
52% OF AMERICANS BELIEVE THAT THE U.S.
IS “ONE OF THE GREATEST COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD”

41. U.S. 19th in Quality of Life
Purchasing power (including rent), safety, health care, cost of living, property price to
income ratio, traffic commute time, pollution, and climate.
DOES THIS LOOK LIKE THE AMERICA YOU WANT?

42. U.S. 21st on Human Development Index
The HDI is a summary measure for assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of
human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living.
DOES THIS LOOK LIKE THE HUMANITY WE NEED?

43. U.S. 16th in World Happiness
DOES THIS LOOK LIKE THE HAPPINESS WE DESERVE?

44. Prosperous Comfortable Mid-tier At Risk Distressed
DOES THIS LOOK LIKE THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY?

45. DOES THIS LOOK FAIR?

46. THE BOTTOM 50% OF U.S. FAMILIES ARE
STRUGGLING IN THE WORLD’S LARGEST ECONOMY
$74,912 $55,321 $45,870 $94,903
median household income by race
$49,906
The median U.S. household income is $67,521

47. 21 STATES ARE ECONOMICALLY CHALLENGED
Despite the 8,764 Opportunity Zones, Impact Investing, The Community Reinvestment Act and Child Tax Credits
Even with ridiculously low poverty guidelines, 48.8 million or 14.7 percent of people lived in poverty in January 2022.
A Columbia University study estimated that child poverty jumped 40% from 12.1 percent in December 2021
to 17 percent in January 2022 after the expanded child tax credit expired.
https://opportunityindex.org/opportunity-index-rankings/
https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/poverty-rate-by-state

48. 32 STATES ARE UNDERCARED FOR
Despite the Affordable Care Act, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
Per capita U.S. healthcare spending went from $2,968 in 1980 to $12,531 in 2020
$140 Billion in medical debt, a 106 million adults with health care debt owe more than $5,000.
62% of personal bankruptcies due to medical expenses.
8.6% of people, or 28.0 million, did not have health insurance at any point during 2020.
https://opportunityindex.org/opportunity-index-rankings/

49. https://opportunityindex.org/opportunity-index-rankings/
30 STATES ARE ACADEMICALLY CHALLENGED
Despite Every Student Succeeds and No Child Left Behind Act
https://educationdata.org/public-education-spending-statistics

50. INEQUALITY IS AT CRISIS LEVELS
U.S.
724 BILLIONAIRES, 21,951,202 MILLIONAIRES
(8.5% of U.S. Adults Ultra High Net Worth Individuals)

51. https://wid.world/country/usa/
INCOME > $173K INCOME < $50K
$8.88
trillion
2021:Q3
EFFECTS OF PREDATORY CAPITALISM
45.5% SHARE OF TOTAL U.S. INCOME 13.3% SHARE OF TOTAL U.S. INCOME
TOP 10% WINNERS BOTTOM 50% LOSERS

52. 70.7% SHARE OF TOTAL U.S. WEALTH
NET WORTH > $854,900 NET WORTH < $8000
$8.88
trillion
2021:Q3
$1.72
trillion
1989:Q3
https://wid.world/country/usa/
1.5% SHARE OF TOTAL U.S. WEALTH
TOP 10% WINNERS BOTTOM 50% LOSERS
EFFECTS OF PREDATORY CAPITALISM

53. 724 U.S. BILLIONAIRES
Have grown fortunes $1.453 trillion to
$4.4 trillion dollars in 2021.
403 BILLIONARES
614 BILLIONARES
49 BILLIONARES
99 BILLIONARES
Billionaires' fortunes have increased as
much in 24 months as they did in 23 years
while avoiding taxes on an epic scale.

54. 50
60
70
80
90
100
Pct.
of
Children
Earning
more
than
their
Parents
1940 1950 1960 1970 1980
Child's Year of Birth
Source: Chetty, Grusky, Hell, Hendren, Manduca, Narang (Science 2017)
LESS THAN 50% OF WORKERS ARE
EARNING MORE THAN THEIR PARENTS

55. THE DISAPPEARING ”AMERICAN DREAM”

56. WAGES NO LONGER TIED TO PRODUCTIVITY

57. WAGES NO LONGER TIED TO PROFITS

58. July 2022: Job Quality Index Level is 81.27
THE LACK OF QUALITY JOBS
Many corporations creating ”Shareholder Value” through outsourcing, offshoring, independent contractors,
gig working, job automation, taking advantage of weak or in some cases non-existent employee unions.

59. AN UNREALISTIC MINIMUM WAGE

60. 42 YEARS OF SYSTEMIC FAILURES

61. The false narrative of meritocracy. It’s the notion that everyone has a shot,
and if you don’t win, it’s your fault. The reality is, we don’t have a
meritocracy. Kids from households that earn more than $200,000/year score
250 points higher on the SAT than kids from households that earn between
$40,000 and $60,000. Kids born into poverty in Salt Lake are twice as
likely to escape poverty as kids born into poverty in Milwaukee. A person of
color born into wealth is twice as likely as a white kid to end up poor.
Our attainment of the American Dream is now largely a function of where we
go to school, which is mostly a function of our parents’ wealth.
We’d like to think we all have a shot. It’s not only less and less true (income
mobility has been cut in half in the last several decades), but it’s also
damaging to our collective well-being. We’ve bought into the mental trap of
believing our inability to offer our kids what our parents gave us is our own
fault, because we live in a meritocracy.
musings from @profgalloway
WHAT ABOUT OUR MERITOCRACY?

62. ON AVERAGE IT TAKES FIVE GENERATIONS FOR THOSE BORN IN
A LOW-INCOME FAMILY TO APPROACH MEAN INCOME IN THE U.S.
Social
Mobility
Index
Only one percent of children born into the poorest twenty percent of U.S.
households, and fewer than two percent children born into the middleclass,
will ever become rich enough to join the top five percent.
U.S. RANKED 27th
IN THE WORLD

63. U.S. COST OF COLLEGE TUITION
We can have a better higher-education system, or we can have a dual class
system that caters to the privileged while exacerbating inequality.

64. U.S. UNDERGRADUATE ENROLLMENT
Enrollment Crisis: Of the 3,640,400 High School graduates in
2021 new data shows that 604,000 fewer students enrolled in
undergraduate programs in spring 2022 than a year earlier, a
decline of 5 percent.

65. “BUY NOW, PAY LATER”
IS NOT THE OPPORTUNITY WE ARE LOOKING FOR

66. Source: Edelman Trust Barometer

67. AMERICANS AGREE IT’S A COMPANY'S RESPONSIBILITY TO:
Regularly increase wages to keep up with
the rapidly rising cost of living.
Provide quality, affordable health insurance coverage
to all adult workers, including part-time workers.
Provide clear career pathways to job opportunities
with higher pay.
Provide adequate hours so adult workers
won't need to seek a second job elsewhere.
Match employee contributions to retirement
savings plans.
Share financial gains with all adult workers through profit sharing
programs such as employee ownership and stock options.

68. CEOS EXPECTED TO INFORM POLICY NOT POLITICS

69. DO AMERICAS CEOS REALLY CARE?
In August of 2019, the Business Roundtable 239 CEOs of 20 million employees
delivered a new policy statement giving notice that the corporations they lead
now will: “share a fundamental commitment to all of our stakeholders.”

70. https://justcapital.com/reports/three-years-after-business-roundtable-redefines-corporate-purpose-americans-think-companies-are-lagging/
PERCENTAGE WHO AGREE LARGE COMPANIES ARE
DOING WELL UPHOLDING THE BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE'S
PURPOSE OF A CORPORATION

71. IN THE FACE OF BACKLASH AGAINST STAKEHOLDER
CAPITALISM, MANY COMPANIES EASED OFF OR
ABANDONED THEIR ESG INITIATIVES
Environmental, Social, and Governance Proposals in the 2021 Proxy Season

72. WHO IS RENT-SEEKING?
Since 2000, the
amount spent on
lobbying has more
than doubled.
In 2021, the total lobbying
spend was 3.73BILLION
https://www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobbying/industries
Industry Total
Pharmaceuticals/Health Products $353,940,426
Electronics Mfg & Equip $185,942,310
Insurance $152,669,641
Business Associations $120,751,743
Hospitals/Nursing Homes $117,399,138
Oil & Gas $115,082,396
Health Services/HMOs $113,880,312
Telecom Services $113,117,010
Electric Utilities $111,219,059
Air Transport $107,874,062
Securities & Investment $107,828,590
Misc Manufacturing & Distributing $104,317,822
Civil Servants/Public Officials $97,696,751
Real Estate $94,038,936
Internet $90,247,963
Education $86,339,939
Health Professionals $84,923,753
Automotive $71,927,422
Misc Issues $62,116,546
Misc Energy $62,020,692

73. WHO IS AVOIDING AND EXPLOITING TAX LAWS?
In a year marked by a health and economic crisis that led to
some businesses closing permanently, many major
corporations remained profitable—and 55 profitable
companies avoided corporate taxes entirely. Collectively these
companies—including FedEx, Nike, Michaels, Dish Network and
Salesforce—brought in more than $40 billion in profits and paid
$0 in federal income taxes, thanks to old and new loopholes.
111 PROFITABLE FORTUNE 500 FIRMS PAID ZERO FEDERAL TAXES IN AT LEAST ONE OF THE LAST FIVE YEARS.

74. WHO IS LETTING THEM?
How Accounting Giants Craft Favorable Tax Rules From Inside Government

75. 0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
1934
1939
1944
1949
1954
1959
1964
1969
1974
1979
1984
1989
1994
1999
2004
2009
2014
2019
https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/historical-tables/
Note: OECD 2020 Average Corporate Tax Rate as Share of GDP is 3.0
CORPORATE INCOME TAX REVENUE AS A SHARE OF GDP

76. https://www.irs.gov/statistics/soi-tax-stats-irs-data-book
WHO IS NOT PAYING A FAIR SHARE OF TAXES?
Corporations pay a 21% maximum tax rate, Capital gains from Private Equity pay a maximum tax rate
of 20%, while the average taxpayer pays 37% maximum taxes on their income.
10.2%
30.6%
57.1%

77. Many corporations are using “Easy Money” from government bond purchases, and low capital interest rates
for short term incentives that hyper-inflate the market and fund executive bonuses through stock options.
2021 record $850 billion in stock buybacks, and $511 billion in dividends
Trillions of Dollars
WHO WAS HYPER-INFLATING THE MARKET?

78. SOME OF US CONCERNED ABOUT THE COST
OF A “FREE MARKET ECONOMY”
1979 - Chrysler Bailout $1.5 billion
1980 - The Saving and Loan Crisis $160 billion
2008 - TARP $634.8 billion
2020 - Pandemic Business Relief $1.7 trillion
2020 - Corporate Credit Facilities $750 billion
2021 - Infrastructure Bill $1.2 trillion
2022 - Industrial Policy Bill $280 billion
$4.726 trillion of Stimulus, Bailouts, and Relief

79. Expanding Social Safety Nets Shifting the Tax Burden
THE HIDDEN COST OF SHAREHOLDER CAPITALISM
AND HOW WE ARE PAYING FOR IT
https://usafacts.org/
SOME OF US CONCERNED ABOUT
2020 vs. 1980 2020 vs. 1980

80. Factors that contribute to the national debt include federal budget deficits,
government borrowing from the Social Security Trust Fund, wars, economic
stimulus packages, funding the Federal Reserve for low interest rates that
promote increased business development and low employment.
2016-2021 Trump added $6.7 trillion
2009-2016 Obama added $8.6 trillion
2001-2009 Bush added $5.85 trillion
1993-2001 Clinton added $1.4 trillion
1989-1993 H.W. Bush added $1.55 trillion
1981-1989 Reagan added $1.86 trillion
SOME OF US CONCERNED ABOUT
$24.3 TRILLION OF PUBLIC DEBT

81. MOST OF US CONCERNED ABOUT FEDERAL RESERVES DUAL
MANDATE AND ABILITY TO STICK THE SOFT-LANDING

82. A BETTER BETTER
IGNORANCE, APATHY, AND POLITICAL ATTACKS ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTABLE IF YOU WANT