Is GOP Up to Bringing Back the American Dream?

"Money don’t get everything, it’s true,

"But what it don't get, I can't use,

"I need money, that's what I need."

Sung by Barrett Strong in 1976, 50 years ago.

Talk about being ahead of his time, Mr. Strong certainly was.

"Affordability!"

It’s the talk of the town, every town.

It's the biggest political issue of the day.

Nothing else comes close; not immigration, not crime, not education.

Let’s break it down.

A recent Fox poll says that three-quarters of the voters see the economy as a negative.

But is it really that bad?

It doesn’t matter.

The state of the economy is what the voters think it is.

The voters blame the Republicans.

Why?

Because the Republicans are in power and the voters are impatient.

The Republicans say, "Not fair!"

Biden’s 9% inflation rate is now Trump’s 3% (and dropping) inflation rate. How did a bad economy become Trump's fault?

It’s simple.

Elections, like the financial markets, are forward looking.

Don't tell this writer about yesterday.

Tell me about tomorrow.

And fix it before November 2026. Because "Money" is the tune the voters are singing. "That’s what (they) want."

Let's start by giving the Trump administration some credit.

As this writer noted, 3% inflation is way better than 9% inflation.

Falling interest rates are better than rising interest rates.

Three-dollar eggs are better than eight-dollar eggs.

Gas at the pump is the lowest in five years.

Let's call that a "good start."

Now . . . let's investigate the very near future.

The Trump tax cuts will arrive in early 2026.

Believe me, you'll notice.

Drug prices will fall significantly as Trump is getting the Europeans to share in the development cost.

Recent executive orders will make cars less expensive and will further drop pump prices due to renewed drilling in places like Alaska.

And Trump is promising two-thousand-dollar tariff rebates for a large number of American families; a move applauded by a recent Rasmussen poll.

Furthermore, the Trump administration is working on meaningful health care reform; consumer driven, price competitive and transparent.

And, recently, the Trump administration unveiled a multi-billion-dollar savings account program for young families.

If all these in-the-works initiatives come to pass in 2026, we can expect happier voters.

Will they be happy enough to save the Republican Congress?

Probably not.

Why not?

Because these improvements are necessary, but not sufficient.

When the voters ask for "Affordability!" they’re not just talking about marginal improvements in their daily expenses.

They're talking about bringing back the American Dream.

Our voters, especially younger ones, want what their parents and grandparents have: A spouse, a house, a well-paying job, two kids, a dog, a safe community, good schools and, maybe, even a white picket fence.

Is the GOP up to that?

I don't know.

But, I'm about to do my share and give them the road map.

It all starts with good (meaning well-paying) jobs.

Where are they?

Who has them?

And what does the Trump administration have to do?

Actually this is the easy part.

It only takes real political courage. The best jobs for the most capable young Americans are now held by foreigners, mostly Asians, under the H1-B Visa program.

400,000 (2024) great jobs, many of them STEM-friendly, are right here in high-tech America, unavailable to qualified Americans because the Visa-people work

for less, a lot less. President Trump could fix that with the flick of his pen.

It works for everyone.

The 400,000 go back home to develop their own country's tech capabilities.

And, our sons and daughters compete for the 400,000 jobs they have earned.

It's better than the lottery.

Eventually, as often happens in the tech world, some of these new hires become tech entrepreneurs themselves.

I'm thinking Silicon Valleys all over.

The Trump administration has already taken the government mortgage guarantees from the Visa-people, dramatically reducing their home buying in the first month.

And, yes, housing is the more difficult issue.

The core solution is obvious: Send the illegal immigrants home.

Trump sent two million illegal aliens home in the past year.

Not enough.

Not nearly enough.

We need another five million in the next 12 months.

That's a lot of starter residences, even if those are mostly rentals.

The new renters will have lower rents that will allow them to save.

The new buyers will be on the American Dream ladder.

Good job, easy mortgage approval.

We're either America First or we're not.

What say you, Republicans?