Despite political rhetoric from both major US parties about supporting the working class, the long-term policy structure—including tax laws and trade tariffs—has systematically worsened their economic reality. These choices disproportionately favor the richest families.
This policy reality is the driving force behind the US’s deepening inequality, evidenced by the tripling of its extreme poverty population to over four million living on less than $3 a day. The problem is structural and political, defying claims of economic inevitability.
The failure is highlighted by the income distribution data: the middle-class share of national income has shrunk significantly since 1980, and the poorest 10% receive a negligible 1.8%, a share that is less than that of low-income groups in countries like Nigeria and Bangladesh.