Pew Research calls it a ‘hollowing out of the middle class,’ but 150 Americans moved up for every 100 who moved down between 1971 and 2011

aei-ideas.org

Comment:

What I see in these numbers is that America is getting poorer.  The number of middle to high income earners has gone down, while the number of low income earners has gone up.  Not only that, it is a steady trend that was in effect before the Reagan years.  It explains rising debt, massive trade and budget deficits, in my opinion.

For example, the combined number of middle to high income earners was 74.8% in 1971.  It shrank to 70.7% in 2011.  Low income earners grew from 25% to 29%.

The left will focus in on the fact that the number of rich has gone up and so has the poor.  They will also say that the middle class is shrinking.  Their proposed policy solution to this will be income redistribution.

While I agree that the rich are getting richer, I don't agree that making everybody poor is a good policy response.

The left has a problem with getting rich.  They are vigorously opposed to it.  The trouble is that if you aren't getting richer, you just might be getting poorer.

I don't think this is the right way to approach the problem.  If America is getting poorer, as I think it is, the answer is to grow the pie, not redistribute a shrinking pie.