Think Progress: 'CEA Chairman Alan Krueger on Income Inequality'

Source:Think Progress- Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Alan Krueger.

"CEA Chairman Alan Krueger on Income Inequality" 

From Think Progress 

Just on a personal note first: Alan Kruger speaks very slowly and carefully, or methodically (if you prefer) as if he's very careful in what he's saying and doesn't want to go too far, at least in this video. 

But as far as what he said in this video, the last I would argue 40 years, the middle class in America haven't done very well. We seem to get a severe recession in every decade that we can't simply recover completely from. The 1990s might be ab exception to that where we got unemployment down to 4% and poverty down to 13%. But wages haven't kept up with economic growth that we've gotten during this period for the middle class, while the top and continued to do very well. 

I don't play class warfare here or anywhere else. I think it's great to be financially independent and wealthy. I just want to see more Americans who are at least comfortably middle class and not worried about losing their homes and going into poverty, if for some reason they become short-term unemployed or have a serious health issue to deal with. 

You don't do that by punishing the wealthy simply for being wealthy and then transferring that money down to Americans who are struggling. Or just give it to government to spend on their behalf. But by empowering individuals who are struggling to moved up the economic ladder on their own.