20th October 2022, 7:23 AM
Yeah, it's pretty frustrating. The main problem is that there is a very very old stereotype that people have that Republicans are better for the economy, and the economy is not the best right now, so let's elect Republicans because they are better for the economy.
This stereotype is, of course, completely false. Republicans are worse for the economy. When you elect them the economy gets worse most of the time, and when you elect Democrats the economy gets better most of the time. But Democrats sometimes raise taxes while Republicans like to lower them, so the falsehood that Reps are better for the economy is a very enduring and widely believed myth.
I agree that Democrats should push hard on breaking that myth, since it is absolutely untrue and if Republicans win that will be a major part of why they won (the other part being "let's vote for the people not in power"), but it's such an old one that I doubt just a few TV ads or something would make THAT much of a difference... so instead they have focused on abortion. I understand why they have and a focus on abortion is necessary, but should Dems mention the economy more? The problem is, most voters will think "but Dems are in power and the economy has issues, why should we vote for them again?" and not listen to the facts, such as that the economy is struggling worldwide and that there's not much anyone on either side can do about that.
So, if the Republicans do win, the economy will not get better. It could well get worse. But we will get the "fun" of endless House investigations on Biden and such, I am not looking forward to that one bit. And we will also get some serious pressure against the US support for Ukraine, since many Republicans are Russia supporters. Ugh. But "vote for the people in power to stay in power because the currently not great economy is not our fault, we're doing our best but there isn't much more we can do", while true, unfortunately is too complex for most people to listen to. :(
This stereotype is, of course, completely false. Republicans are worse for the economy. When you elect them the economy gets worse most of the time, and when you elect Democrats the economy gets better most of the time. But Democrats sometimes raise taxes while Republicans like to lower them, so the falsehood that Reps are better for the economy is a very enduring and widely believed myth.
I agree that Democrats should push hard on breaking that myth, since it is absolutely untrue and if Republicans win that will be a major part of why they won (the other part being "let's vote for the people not in power"), but it's such an old one that I doubt just a few TV ads or something would make THAT much of a difference... so instead they have focused on abortion. I understand why they have and a focus on abortion is necessary, but should Dems mention the economy more? The problem is, most voters will think "but Dems are in power and the economy has issues, why should we vote for them again?" and not listen to the facts, such as that the economy is struggling worldwide and that there's not much anyone on either side can do about that.
So, if the Republicans do win, the economy will not get better. It could well get worse. But we will get the "fun" of endless House investigations on Biden and such, I am not looking forward to that one bit. And we will also get some serious pressure against the US support for Ukraine, since many Republicans are Russia supporters. Ugh. But "vote for the people in power to stay in power because the currently not great economy is not our fault, we're doing our best but there isn't much more we can do", while true, unfortunately is too complex for most people to listen to. :(