There’s an old Anne Murray song that had as one of its lyrics, “sure could use a little good news today.” Now, while good news doesn’t necessarily sell newspapers or newscasts, it does help every now and then.
Case in point… President Joe Biden. He could sure use a little good news. He’s got Covid. The economy is uncertain. His poll numbers look awful.
Good news for President Biden might be on the way. Today’s Washington Post has a story called “Biden poised for big wins in Congress.”
What’s the good news? Legislation on microchips and prescription drugs. Both seem to have the support from both sides of the political aisle.
Here’s what the Post is saying. Congress is likely to pass a bill providing $52 billion to the U.S. semiconductor industry. That would bolster the U.S. economy and cut China’s influence.
Of the bill, President Biden said, “We’re close, so let’s get it done. So much depends on it.”
The other big piece of legislation would allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. This would be the most significant drug pricing legislation since 2003. The cost of prescription drugs is enormously popular with voters in most polls.
Another piece of legislation that has bipartisan support in the House is one that is dear to my heart. It would codify same-sex marriage. 47 Republicans joined Democrats in supporting it.
Where this goes in the Senate is still uncertain although some Republican senators are already on board. I’m watching this one closely. I don’t want Clarence Thomas to have a say in my marriage.
President Biden could use some good news because the news on the economy just doesn’t look good. While he my not think we are headed into a recession, consumers may think otherwise.
The Federal Reserve kicks off a two day meeting today. A possible three quarters-of-a-percent interest rate increase is widely reported.
Retail numbers are starting to take a hit. Walmart cut its quarterly and full year profit estimates. It seems consumers are pulling back on buying merchandise and focusing more on food.
Walmart’s stock is down. Amazon, Target, Macy’s, Costco, and Dollar General all saw drops too.
And then this… the price of a used car is more than $10 thousand dollars above what’s considered normal market conditions. On line market place “Co-Pilot” says that’s 43% above earlier predictions. The reason? Demand and low inventory of new cars and inflation.
We could all use a little good news. Winning that $810 million dollar Mega-Millions jackpot would do it.
$810 million dollars. Singing good news all day long.