Winning August

In 1993 and 2009, new Democratic presidencies ground to a halt after Republicans out-organized and sucker punched Democrats in a pair of August recesses. Democrats have a great story to tell this August, and we need to shout it from the rooftops. The Biden-Harris Administration and the Democratic Congress are off to a historic start. It is up to Democrats to let people know.

The economy is growing thanks to the American Rescue Plan. Millions are vaccinated, and COVID is gradually being tamed. Working parents are receiving checks. Schools are re-opening in the fall. Republicans are at each other’s throats. It’s finally infrastructure week, thanks to a huge bipartisan jobs, infrastructure, and clean energy bill that’s making its way through Congress. And more structural changes in health care, child care, climate, and workforce training will come to fruition this fall.  

Data is great, but stories are better. Below we provide talking points and data so you can find the people and places to tell this great story.

OUR STORY: ON THE ECONOMY – AMERICA IS BACK!

Under Biden’s Build Back Better policies, our economy is roaring back and is recovering at a pace rarely seen in history.

• America has added 4.3 million jobs in 2021 after losing 9.4 million jobs in 2020 under Trump.
• The Unemployment rate has fallen to 5.4% in 2021 after rocketing to 14.8% in 2020 under Trump.
• Wages this year are rising at among the highest rates in decades.
• Economic growth in the U.S. is expected to exceed an astounding 6% this year, the highest US economic growth in decades and far higher than growth rates in Europe and other advanced nations.
• The stock market has already hit 40 record highs in 2021 and is up 18% since Inauguration Day (through August 5). IRAs, 401Ks, and other retirement accounts that voters hold are healthy and growing.
• Inflation did briefly go up during the recovery, but most believe it is temporary as the economy wakes up from COVID.
  • Gas prices have leveled off.
  • Lumber prices have been nearly halved since early June.
  • The 10-year Treasury Note (a key forecaster of future inflation) sits at a placid 1.2% and is below pre-pandemic levels.
  • Inflation in such things as new and used cars and some construction materials is temporary as consumers get back to normal and supply chains normalize after COVID.
• Under Biden 205 million Americans have taken the vaccine, and COVID deaths and cases have plummeted with most of the illnesses relegated to those who refuse to get vaccinated.

OUR STORY: ON TAXES – $300 CHECKS FROM A WORKING PARENTS TAX CUT

Biden and Democrats won a new working parents tax cut and are now fighting to make $300 per child monthly checks permanent.

• The Child Tax Credit passed under the American Relief Plan gives working parents the tax break they’ve always needed - $300 a month that goes directly into bank accounts to cover child care, school supplies, braces, or anything a family needs to get ahead or stay afloat.
• This same working parents tax credit cuts childhood poverty nearly in half.
• Biden and Democrats made and kept their promise not to raise taxes ON ANYONE making less than $400,000 and will continue to stay true to that.

OUR STORY: ON HEALTH CARE – LOWER COSTS, MORE COVERED

With Obamacare no longer under Republican assault, Biden and Democrats are lowering and capping health care costs so families don’t go broke paying for care.

• Lower Premiums: Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, a typical family of four who purchases coverage on the exchange will see their health care premiums decrease by $200/month.
• Lower Deductibles: The American Rescue Plan lowers deductibles for new ACA consumers by nearly 90%, from $450 to $50.
• More Savings: The American Rescue Plan capped total health care costs for ACA enrollees at 8.5% of a household’s income. 80% of ACA enrollees will be able to find a plan for $10 or less a month.
• More Covered: 2 million Americans have signed up for health insurance since President Biden reopened the ACA exchanges in February.

OUR STORY: ON INFRASTRUCTURE - A HISTORIC, BIPARTISAN, JOBS-PRODUCING INFRASTRUCTURE AND CLIMATE BILL THAT IS PAID FOR

Joe Biden promised and is delivering on bipartisan action to heal and bring the nation together.

This historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal:

• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in clean energy and electric vehicle infrastructure;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in public transit and clean energy school buses;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in passenger rail;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in bridge repair and reconstruction;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment by replacing the nation’s lead pipes and delivering clean water to millions of families;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in clean energy innovation so we can generate electricity and manufacture products here at home without polluting our air and water;
• Makes a large, jobs-producing investment in universal high-speed internet; and,
• Is paid for without raising taxes on anyone making less than $400k.

Republicans will try to tell their story about Biden’s and Democrats’ first 8 months. Their story ignores the stunning turnaround in our economy, the millions of new private sector jobs, the magnificent economic growth that has brought us back to pre-pandemic output, the confident bull market that is setting record after record, the 200+ million Americans who got vaccinated faster than anyone thought possible, the lower health care costs and increased coverage from Obamacare, and the jobs, opportunity, and growth-producing bipartisan infrastructure deal. That is why Democrats must spend August telling the true story.