¶ … Economic Inequality
How serious is the issue of income inequality in the United States? This paper delves into the factual data surrounding this issue, including polling numbers taken by Gallup and the positions taken by Democrats and Republicans.
Income Inequality -- The Statistical Picture
Journalist Larry Schwartz has done the digging into relevant data and his article in Salon shows that: a) in 81% of U.S. counties, the median income is $52,000, " ... less than it was 15 years ago"; b) the poorest half of Americans own 2.5% of the country's wealth but the top 1% own 35% of the country's wealth; c) the cash doled out in bonuses on Wall Street in 2014 " ... is twice the amount all minimum-wage workers earned in the country combined"; d) Italians, Belgians and Japanese ordinary citizens " ... are wealthier than Americans"; and e) four hundred Americans have more wealth, $2 trillion, than one-half of all Americans combined (Schwartz, 2015).
In the peer-reviewed American Journal of Public Health, the authors point out that in 1980, the top 5% of households " ... accounted for 16.5% of all income ... and the bottom 20% accounted for 4.2% of all income"; however, by 2013, the top 5% of households "accounted for 22.2% of all income" and the bottom 20% " ... accounted for only 3.2% of all income" (Williams, et al., 2015).
Income Inequality -- Gallup Poll Reflects American's Opinions
Sixty-three percent of Americans...
money and wealth distribution is unfair," and a small majority (52%) of Americans " ... favor heavy taxes on rich as [a] fix" (Newport, 2015). Twelve percent of Democrats in the Gallup poll say income distribution "is fair"; 86% of Democrats say income should be more "evenly distributed" and 2% either don't know or wouldn't say (Newport, p. 2). As for participants who say they are Republicans, 56% say distribution is fair; 34% indicated that wealth should be more evenly divided; and 9% don't know or wouldn't say (Newport, 2015). These polling results are not much different from the surveys taken in 2009, 2011, and 2013; in fact the average over the last 13 Gallup polls on this issue is 62% who agree distribution is unfair, Newport explains on page 1.
Republicans' Views on Income Inequality
In the recent past, Democrats have been alone in talking about inequality in American incomes, according to a piece in The New York Times. But, during the current campaign among Republican presidential hopefuls, the issue is coming up often. Why are Republicans presenting income inequality as an issue in the campaign? It may be necessary " ... to address an issue that the public sees as especially important," journalist Brendan Nyhan writes (2015). Also, Republicans apparently need to " ... minimize the damage it can cause to a disadvantaged candidate or party"; moreover, President Obama has made inequality an important issue (by calling…
