Washington D.C. doesn't work. You know what does? America itself.

MW Washington D.C. doesn't work. You know what does? America itself.

By Paul Brandus

The U.S. as a whole is doing better than the media or our politicians let on

The U.S. is making leaps in everything from artificial intelligence and quantum computing to hydroponic farming.

This still-young 21st-century has been a gloomy time for Americans. In January 2000, 69% of us, according to the polling and analytical firm Gallup, were satisfied with "the way things are going in the U.S." Optimism has slid rather steadily ever since, and now just 22% of us are satisfied.

Little wonder. Over almost 25 years - an entire generation - we've had the trauma of 9/11, the two longest wars in U.S. history, devastating bear markets between 2000-2002 (when the S&P 500 SPX plunged 57% and the Nasdaq COMP shed 78%), plus both a housing and stock-market collapse just a few years later that wiped out trillions in wealth. This "Great Recession" of 2008 was, many economists thought, the worst downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Now add the COVID-19 pandemic four years ago that killed more than 1 million Americans, wiped out, in two horrific months, some 22 million jobs, and helped spark a burst of inflation that has only recently subsided.

Before going further, spare me your insistence that the U.S. political party you don't like is to blame, because this period since 2000 has been pretty evenly marked by both Republican and Democratic presidents, and by periods when one party or the other controlled one or both chambers of Congress. Our long, gradual decline into dissatisfaction has been a bipartisan affair.

It's no coincidence that over this same period, the U.S. political divide has widened, with people on both sides of the spectrum arguing bitterly over our future. And it's no coincidence that over this same period, institutional trust in just about everything has fallen precipitously. We don't seem to trust anyone, other than those with whom we're predisposed to agree with.

Much of this anger and distrust is aimed at Washington, D.C. I live here and in my travels, people tell me all the time that "Washington doesn't work," and that "nobody there can ever get anything done." Of course, the elected representatives who are in Washington are invariably sent by the same folks who complain that nothing ever gets done.

The U.S. unemployment rate is 4.1%. And there are still 8 million job openings. Employers simply can't find enough workers.

So Washington D.C. doesn't work. You know what does? America itself. The country as a whole is doing better than the media or our politicians tell us. America, it seems, is humming along. Here are a few important examples:

Jobs: The U.S. unemployment rate is 4.1%. Look at this data going back three-quarters of a century to 1948. Historically, we're doing pretty darn well. And there are still 8 million job openings. Employers simply can't find enough workers.

The U.S. economy as a whole is also strong: GDP is currently growing at a 3% pace, which is roughly in line - with the outlier exception of the pandemic collapse and rebound - with growth over the past two decades.

The U.S. is also doing better - a lot better - than other members of the so-called G-7 nations. Notes the Financial Times: "The US is on track to grow at double the rate of any other G7 country this year, according to IMF (International Monetary Fund) forecasts, as the strength of the world's biggest economy rocks international markets."

Meanwhile, America's principal geopolitical rival, China, has been slowing for several years now, as a lesson slowly dawns on Beijing's dictators that they can have either Adam Smith's capitalism or Karl Marx's communism, but not both.

The Social Security Administration's cost-of-living adjustment for 2025, tied to inflation, will be just 2.5%, and the U.S. Federal Reserve recently cut its key fed funds rate by half a percentage-point. Both are evidence enough that inflation - which began surging globally during the pandemic - has retreated sharply. In fact, in much of the developed world, inflation remains higher than here, in some cases much higher.

While inflation has come down, wage growth, as measured by the Fed's 12-month moving average, exceeds inflation, meaning that purchasing power is expanding. When wages rise faster than inflation, that's how you get ahead.

Americans are starting businesses at a record clip.

Far beyond the Washington Beltway, Americans are starting businesses at a record clip. The Small Business Administration $(SBA.UK)$ notes that last year alone, some 5.5 million new business applications were filed; the SBA says that's a record.

Most startups fail within a few years, but the best ideas - often backed by a robust, and quintessentially American ecosystem of angel investors and venture capital - can grow into world-class companies in big growth industries like AI, additive manufacturing, robotics, aerospace and more. Consider where these acorns from 20 years ago are now: Meta Platforms $(META)$ (originally Facebook), Redfin $(RDFN)$ and Roblox $(RBLX)$.

Also, far beyond Washington D.C., Americans are adapting as they look to the future. Trade schools are booming, as young folks question the value and expense of college and instead learn to be plumbers, electricians and more - skills in short supply and can easily pay six figures.

Another intriguing example of how America is working and looking to the future: Texas, long a fossil-fuel king, now gets almost 30% of its electricity from renewable energy. The Lone Star State boasts more than 47,000 clean-energy jobs, and while there's quite a ways to go before the size of that workforce matches the estimated 347,000 oil and gas jobs in Texas, the trend is impressive.

Read: The U.S. economy's biggest threat? China's clean-energy push.

Examples of progress in other sectors of our economy abound. The U.S. is making leaps in everything from artificial intelligence and quantum computing to hydroponic farming. While 5G connectivity remains relatively new, some companies are already looking to 6G. And electric cars? The Federal Aviation Administration recently approved the first electric car that flies. And there's so much more.

If politicians in Washington could cease their petty, hyper-partisan nonsense and work together with, and on behalf of, we the people, just imagine what else Americans can get done.

None of this is to gloss over America's problems, which are big, complex and often intertwined. I fear that the differences among Americans, seemingly intractable, could get worse, perhaps even violent, in the near future. If there is any one thing that the folks in Washington can do to help, it is to lead and govern by example. If only they could cease their petty, hyper-partisan nonsense and work together with, and on behalf of, we the people, just imagine what else Americans can get done.

More: Whether you vote for Harris or Trump, it's a sure bet the stock market will thrive

Plus: All of Kamala Harris's and Donald Trump's proposed tax breaks - in two charts

-Paul Brandus

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October 17, 2024 07:55 ET (11:55 GMT)

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