There are several reasons why our retirement crisis has become so severe.

First of all, people are living significantly longer than they did decades ago, and so retirees need more money these days.

Secondly, most retirees did not save enough for retirement, and many of them entered their retirement years carrying high levels of debt.

Thirdly, healthcare costs are completely and utterly out of control in this country.  We desperately need to do something about this.

Fourthly, high inflation has made the cost of living extremely oppressive.

Fifthly, pension plans are less common then they once were, and so more retirees than ever are depending upon Social Security as their primary source of income.

When you step back and consider the big picture, it is clear that we have a major problem on our hands, and there are no easy solutions.

The following are 18 incredible statistics about America’s retirement crisis that will blow your mind…

1. Back in 1940, the average life expectancy of a 65-year-old was about 14 years.  Now, it is over 20 years.
2. The number of Americans that are 65 and older will rise to about 77 million by 2035.
3. Americans that are retiring now will need an average of $1.22 million to last thirty years in retirement.
4. Only about half of all U.S. households currently have retirement savings accounts.
5. One recent survey found that 93 percent of Republicans, 86 percent of Democrats, and 94 percent of independents believe that there is a retirement savings crisis in this country.
6. 47 million U.S. households with older adults are either “financially struggling” or are “at risk of falling into economic insecurity”.
7. Approximately 80 percent of Americans have thought about putting off retirement due to financial reasons.
8. Over 90 percent of Americans are concerned that they may have to work more years than they originally planned.
9. There is supposed to be approximately 2.7 trillion dollars in the Social Security trust fund, but our politicians took all of that money and spent it instead.  Today, our Social Security trust fund is simply a colossal pile of government bonds.
10. Social Security is the primary source of income for most Americans over the age of 65.
11. According to the National Academy of Social Insurance, 33 percent of Social Security recipients receive all or nearly all of their income from Social Security.
12. Nearly nine out of ten people age 65 and older are receiving Social Security benefits.
13. In 2009, nearly 51 million Americans received $672 billion in Social Security benefits.  In 2024, nearly 68 million Americans received $1.5 trillion in Social Security benefits.
14. More than 180 million U.S. workers have earnings covered by Social Security, and they pay approximately 1.2 trillion dollars in Social Security payroll taxes.
15. As you can see from the previous two items, our Social Security payroll taxes are not enough to cover the amount being paid out in benefits.
16. The average Social Security benefit for a retired worker in the U.S. was $1,922 per month in September 2024.
17. Back in 1950, each retiree’s Social Security benefit was paid for by 16 workers.  In 2010, each retiree’s Social Security benefit was paid for by approximately 3.3 workers.  By 2035, it is being projected that there will be approximately 2.4 workers for each retiree.
18. Close to 50 percent of all American workers do not believe that the Social Security system will pay them benefits when they retire.

Needless to say, our federal government is facing an unprecedented financial nightmare, and our retirement crisis is a big reason for that.

Social Security accounts for approximately 21 percent of the federal budget, and Medicare accounts for approximately 14 percent. That means that those two programs alone account for more than a third of all federal spending.

The politicians in Washington would never dare to make cuts to those programs, because elderly voters would revolt in a major way.

So if we are going to do anything to get our exploding debt under control, cutbacks will have to occur elsewhere.

But we desperately need to do something, because our 36 trillion dollar national debt is growing very rapidly and it threatens to overwhelm us. We are in so much trouble.

As our debt continues to explode and general economic conditions continue to deteriorate, I expect the plight of our retirees to continue to intensify. And that is not good news for any of us.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

“In 2025, prices for all food are predicted to increase 1.9 percent,” the agency said in a Jan. 8 report.

Food-at-home and away-from-home prices are projected to rise by 0.8 and 3.5 percent respectively. While overall food prices are projected to increase this year, the gain is expected to be “at a slower pace than the historical average rate of growth.” In 2021, prices rose by 3.9 percent, in 2022 by 9.9 percent, and in 2023 by 5.8 percent.

The Food Price Outlook tracks and forecasts annual food price changes by taking into account projected and observed prices over the previous two years.

In 2024, food prices are estimated to have increased by 2.3 percent. The food category that registered the largest price change last year is eggs, which rose by an estimated 7.7 percent. This was followed by beef and veal with a 5.5 percent increase, fats and oils at 2.5 percent, and cereals and bakery items with a marginal gain of 0.5 percent.

Fish and seafood are calculated to have seen the biggest price dip at 1.9 percent, followed by dairy products which fell by 0.3 percent.

As for domestic factors, Kelly, an economics professor, blames higher energy costs, regulations on trucking like banning cages for chickens, and extreme weather as contributing factors. However, “the vast majority of the high food prices are attributed to high inflation,” he said.

“Inflation certainly affects food as it does every other good. Since 2019, general prices have increased 4.2 percent per year, and food prices have risen 4.8 percent.”

Kelly suggested exploring ways to boost the food supply and cut down regulations to curb food inflation. “You could do things such as reduce tariffs or promote free-trade agreements especially in agriculture, but those are not popular,” he said.

The USDA blames egg prices on the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) that began in 2022.

The outbreak “contributed to elevated egg prices by reducing the U.S. egg-layer flock,” it said. “HPAI continued to drive egg price increases in 2024, with recent detections in December 2024. Egg prices in November 2024 were 37.5 percent higher than those in November 2023.”

Egg prices at the farm level also continue to experience “large monthly changes,” said the agency. “In November 2024, prices for farm-level eggs were 94.4 percent higher than November 2023, when prices had fallen during a lull in the outbreak through much of 2023.”

The USDA called egg prices “the most volatile category” tracked by the agency.

This includes almost 102 million egg-laying hens and pullets—hens less than a year old that have yet to start laying eggs.

“As the current HPAI outbreak enters its fourth year, the impact on the poultry industry remains significant,” the association said.

Macy’s is closing 66 stores across 22 states in an effort to “return the company to sustainable, profitable sales growth,” the retailer said in a Jan. 9 statement. Out of the 66 outlets, two have already been closed. A majority of the stores are expected to be closed during the first quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, Kohl’s announced plans to shutter 27 “underperforming stores” across 15 states by April this year.

Macy’s year-over-year quarterly revenue growth registered declines for the past 10 consecutive quarters. The retailer’s “Bold New Chapter” strategy plans to shut down 150 unproductive stores while “investing in its 350 go-forward Macy’s locations through fiscal 2026,” the statement said.

Macy’s CEO Tony Spring said that closing unproductive outlets would “allow us to focus our resources and prioritize investments in our go–forward stores, where customers are already responding positively to better product offerings and elevated service.”

Shares of the company were down by more than 15 percent over the past year.
As for Kohl’s, most of the closures are set to take place in California, with 10 outlets shutting down in the state.

In addition, the company aims to shutter its San Bernardino E-commerce Fulfillment Center (EFC) in May, when the facility’s lease term expires. It is one of the 15 EFCs and distribution centers linked to the company across the United States.

Kohl’s justified the decision, saying it is in a position to fulfill orders without the San Bernardino facility.

“All associates have been informed, and offered a competitive severance package or the ability to apply to other open roles at Kohl’s,” it said.

Kohl’s quarterly revenues have registered a year-over-year decline for 11 straight quarters. Over the past year, the company’s shares have crashed by more than 51 percent.

Tough Business Conditions

Several companies have slashed store counts, shuttered divisions, or filed for bankruptcy in recent months, citing profitability and cost challenges.

This week, REI, a specialty outdoor retailer, said the company was exiting from its Experiences business, which included day tours and adventure travel. CEO Eric Artz said the segment “costs significantly more to run than it brings in.”

“When we look at the all-up costs of running this business, including costs like marketing and technology, we are losing millions of dollars every year and subsidizing Experiences with profits from other parts of the business,” he said.

Last month, party goods retailer Party City announced filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and shuttering almost 700 stores nationwide after being in business for almost four decades.

The company said the decision was taken to ensure continued operations while it faced an “immensely challenging environment driven by inflationary pressures on costs and consumer spending, among other factors.”

In October 2024, convenience store chain 7-Eleven announced closing 444 underperforming stores to boost efficiency and manage costs.

According to a report from S&P Global, U.S. corporate bankruptcies hit a 14-year high in 2024, registering 694 filings. S&P’s bankruptcy calculations only consider large companies that exceed certain asset and liability thresholds.

“Businesses continued to face pressure in 2024 from elevated interest rates, especially as total debt among credit-rated non-financial U.S. companies reached a quarterly record of $8.453 trillion,” the report said.

“While some relief came in September when the U.S. Federal Reserve began lowering its benchmark interest rate from a 20-year high, the central bank’s monetary easing may slow in 2025.”

Overall commercial Chapter 11 bankruptcies rose by 20 percent in 2024, according to a Jan. 3 statement from the American Bankruptcy Institute. Michael Hunter, vice president of bankruptcy data provider Epiq AACER, said he expects the filing growth to continue throughout this year.

“If the current trend continues, new bankruptcy filings will return to pre-pandemic normalized volumes over the next 24–30 months,” he said.

The Congressional Budget Office reported $710 billion in borrowing, including $85 billion in the month of December, according to the latest Monthly Budget Review.

Federal agencies, including the CBO, expect deficit spending to continue despite promises from Trump and others to cut the federal budget.

Trump promised to cut “hundreds of billions” in federal spending in 2025 through the reconciliation process, a parliamentary procedure that allows Congress to expedite the passage of some federal budget legislation.

Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, run by Tesla boss Elon Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, also promised to cut the federal government down to size. Earlier this week, Musk estimated DOGE could trim $1 trillion from the federal budget, a sizable amount considering discretionary spending totaled $1.7 trillion in 2023. Generally, Congress spends about half of its discretionary budget on the U.S. Department of Defense.

Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said U.S. borrowing should be a focus as Trump takes office.

“As we start the new year ushering in a new administration and a new Congress, we must not lose sight of the fiscal challenges ahead,” she said. “Our unsustainable debt isn’t something we can just shy away from, as 2025 is packed full of fiscal deadlines. So far we’ve heard much about how lawmakers plan to spend more and tax less; we’ve heard much less about the opposite.”

MacGuineas suggested no new borrowing and guaranteeing all tax cuts and spending increases are fully offset. That’s a daunting challenge for lawmakers as they look to extend the tax provision in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which the CBO estimated will cost about $4 trillion over the next decade.

Congress has run a deficit every year since 2001. In the past 50 years, the federal government has ended with a fiscal year-end budget surplus four times, most recently in 2001.

This is the highest total in Texas history – shattering last year’s record by nearly $1 billion.

What the industry paid in one year, $27.3 billion, is more than what 34 states received in total tax revenues.

It translates to $74.8 million paid every day for a range of public services, including toward Texas’ public schools, universities, roads, first responders and other essential services.

“Remarkably, 2024 was yet another record-breaking year as the Texas oil and natural gas industry does its part to help reach Governor Abbott’s goal for our state’s economy to surpass France as the 7th largest economy in the world,” TXOGA president Todd Staples said. “From tax revenues and production to pipelines, storage, processing, refining, and exports, Texas’ oil and natural gas industry has achieved record-breaking performance across every sector.”

Staples said the industry has been so successful because “Texas leaders embrace policies that recognize oil and natural gas as an asset, not a liability. They view businesses as a partner, not an adversary. For its part, the industry has persevered through hostile federal policies of the outgoing Administration, global unrest and market volatility – including negative prices for natural gas – to shatter its own records, all while protecting and improving the environment.”

The industry primarily funds three major state funds: the Economic Stabilization Fund (Rainy Day Fund), Permanent School Fund and Permanent University Fund.

Since the Texas legislature created the Rainy Day Fund in 1987, it’s received more than $33.9 billion from Texas oil and natural gas production taxes.

The industry is a major funder of Texas public education. In fiscal 2024, 99% of Texas oil and natural gas royalties were deposited into the Permanent School Fund and the Permanent University Fund, $1.5 billion and $1.9 billion, respectively.

By the end of fiscal 2024, the value of the funds totaled $57.3 billion and $31.7 billion, respectively.

“The Texas Permanent School Fund is larger than Harvard’s endowment and is the largest education endowment in the nation,” Staples notes. “The oil and natural gas industry is the only significant contributor of fresh investment capital to these critical Texas education funds.”

In addition to these funds, in fiscal 2024, Texas school districts directly received $2.92 billion in property taxes from mineral properties producing oil and natural gas, pipelines, and gas utilities. Counties directly received $1.03 billion in industry property taxes.

According to TXOGA data of ISDs, the districts that received the most oil and natural gas industry property taxes are in west Texas in the Permian Basin. In these and many districts, the industry represents the majority of the tax base.

Pecos-Barstow-Toyah ISD received the most of $304.4 million, with industry taxes representing 83% of the tax base.

Midland ISD received the next greatest amount of $217.5 million, representing 50.7% of the tax base. Wink-Loving ISD received $184 million, representing 92.4% of the tax base. Rankin ISA received $130 million, representing 92.4% of the tax base.

According to TXOGA data of counties, the top counties receiving the most oil and natural gas property taxes are in West Texas in the Permian Basin.

Reeves County received the most of $110.1 million with industry taxes representing 85% of the tax base. Martin County received the next greatest amount of $54.9 million, with industry taxes representing 94.5% of the tax base; Loving County received 53.6% million, with industry taxes representing 94.7% of the tax base.

In counties where the industry paid significantly less property taxes, it still represented a majority share of the county’s tax base. In Andrews County. for example, the industry paid $23.2 million in property taxes but represented 80.5% of the tax base; it paid $13.2 million in Crockett County representing 83% of the county’s tax base.

The Texas oil and natural gas industry has paid more than $257.6 billion in state and local taxes and state royalties since TXOGA began compiling the data in 2007. The total excludes hundreds of billions of dollars in payroll for some of the highest paying jobs in the state. It also excludes taxes paid on office buildings and personal property, as well as other service jobs that depend on the industry and taxes paid by other sectors benefitting from the industry, TXOGA notes.

The deal encompasses all items discussed for the new contract, with both parties agreeing to continue operations under the current contract until a ratification vote can be scheduled. Details of the tentative agreement have not been disclosed publicly, as they are pending review and approval by ILA rank-and-file members and USMX members.

A key aspect of the agreement involves compromises on automation and semi-automation, areas that were central to past disputes. Sources indicate that while full automation has been ruled out, USMX retains the right to introduce technology deemed necessary for port modernization. In return, the ILA is guaranteed specific job roles linked to new equipment installations. This technology and labor integration will continue to be managed through a committee process composed of members from both the union and port management.

The joint statement from ILA and USMX highlighted the agreement’s significance: “We are pleased to announce that ILA and USMX have reached a tentative agreement on a new six-year ILA-USMX Master Contract, subject to ratification, thus averting any work stoppage on January 15, 2025. This agreement protects current ILA jobs and establishes a framework for implementing technologies that will create more jobs while modernizing East and Gulf coasts ports – making them safer and more efficient, and creating the capacity they need to keep our supply chains strong.”

The statement further described the deal as a “win-win,” emphasizing that it supports American consumers and businesses by maintaining the U.S. as a central hub in global trade.

The agreement comes after previous labor tensions, including a strike in October 2024, which underscored the importance of labor peace in maintaining the efficiency of America’s supply chains. With this tentative deal, both sides aim to foster a stable environment for port operations moving forward.

Article generated from corporate media reports.

In a post on X, Musk stated, “The ‘fixed pie’ fallacy is at the heart of much wrong-headed economic thinking. There is essentially infinite potential for job and company creation. Think of all the things that didn’t exist 20 or 30 years ago!”

His comments were in response to entrepreneur Joe Lonsdale’s mention of Sriram Krishnan, who has been tapped by President-elect Trump for a role in the upcoming administration. Krishnan had previously advocated for lifting the cap on green cards to unlock skilled immigration, a policy that aligns with Musk’s vision for expanding economic opportunities.

Musk’s perspective challenges the traditional economic theories which often emphasize scarcity and competition for existing resources rather than the creation of new opportunities. His argument suggests that innovation and entrepreneurship can break the mold of traditional economic constraints, fostering an environment where new jobs and businesses can be created without being limited by current market conditions.

This viewpoint was further highlighted when Musk discussed the need for merit-based immigration policies. Krishnan himself has supported skills-based criteria for green card allocation, emphasizing that the best talent should be attracted to the U.S. regardless of their country of origin. Musk’s support for such policies aligns with his belief in an economy where growth is not zero-sum but can be expansive, driven by human ingenuity and innovation.

Musk’s comments also resonate with his involvement in multiple industries where he has not only created jobs but also significantly transformed sectors like automotive, aerospace, and now social media through his various ventures like Tesla, SpaceX, and X. His approach underscores a belief in an economy where new sectors can emerge, offering new employment opportunities.

By challenging the notion of a static economic pie, Musk advocates for a dynamic economic model where growth is perpetually possible through technological advancement and entrepreneurial ventures. This perspective has sparked discussions among economists, policymakers, and the public on how to view economic development and job creation in a rapidly changing global landscape.

Article generated from corporate media reports.

From the Editor: The Double Slipper Slopes

On the surface, this infinitely inclusive rhetoric sounds appealing. It removes limits to the potential for prosperity and who wouldn’t want that?

Well, actually, a lot of people wouldn’t want it for many reasons and greed isn’t one of them. This sounds very close to embracing the notion of Modern Monetary Theory in which money is uncapped and therefore even more worthless than the fiat monetary system we have in place today. And while Musk does not openly promote and would likely never overtly embrace the destructive theory, it’s an inescapable conclusion if policies were to enable his vision.

To be clear, I’m not suggesting that Musk is trying to bring about the destruction of our economy through Modern Monetary Theory any more than I would suggest that he’s calling for open borders with his idea of allowing uncapped “skilled” immigration, but both are inevitable if his ideas were to manifest in large scale.

There’s about a 90% chance that these particular ideas are simply fanciful whimsy with no attempts at practical application. Then again, there’s a small chance that he’s setting us up for the fall by being a covert shill for the Globalist Elite Cabal.

This marks a $5 trillion increase since 2023 alone. Looking ahead, debt levels are projected to increase faster than previously expected as government policies fail to address debt risks amid aging populations and increasing healthcare costs. Going further, rising geopolitical tensions could lead to higher spending on defense, adding strain to government budgets.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalist’s Dorothy Neufeld, shows government debt by country in 2024, based on data from the IMF’s October 2024 World Economic Outlook.

Ranked: Government Debt by Country

As the world’s largest economy, the U.S. debt pile continues to balloon, accounting for 34.6% of the world’s total government debt.

Overall, net interest payments on the national debt soared to $892 billion in the 2024 fiscal year. By 2034, these costs are forecast to reach $1.7 trillion, with total net interest costs amounting to $12.9 trillion over the next decade. A rising mountain of debt and higher interest rates are among the primary factors driving up net interest costs.

Below, we show the gross government debt of 186 countries worldwide in 2024:

*The above table uses IMF data from October 2024, however, the most current up-to-date number for U.S. government debt is $36.1 trillion based on data from the U.S. Treasury for December 12, 2024.

China, ranking second globally, holds 16.1% of the world’s government debt.

Over the next five years, China’s debt to GDP ratio is projected to hit 111.1% of GDP, up from 90.1% in 2024. Going further, Chinese officials recently stated they are prepared to deploy stimulus measures to support the economy if Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on goods imported from China. As a result, China’s debt to GDP could rise even faster than current projections.

India, ranked seventh globally, has amassed $3.2 trillion in debt, an increase of 74% since 2019. However, thanks to its strong economic growth and fiscal policies that are increasing government revenues, debt as a percentage of GDP is projected to fall gradually from 83.1% in 2024 to 80.5% by 2028.

In Europe, the UK has amassed the most debt, about $3.65 trillion, equal to 101.8% of GDP. This is far higher than the regional average, standing at 77.4% of GDP in 2024. Europe has a lower debt to GDP than North America and the Asia-Pacific, but European budgets likely face increasing pressures looking ahead, due to sluggish economic growth, trade wars, and aging populations.

A Regional Outlook for Global Debt

Below, we show how government debt by region is projected to change over the next five years:

As we can see, average debt by country in North America is set to swell to 125% of GDP, the highest across global regions.

With governments increasingly using stimulus measures to boost the economy, it poses a greater threat to fiscal sustainability. In order to stabilize debts, the IMF stated that major spending cuts and tax hikes are needed over the next five to seven years.

Like North America, debt to GDP ratios are set to increase across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Overall, world government debt is projected to exceed 100% of global output by 2029, driven by several large countries including the U.S., China, Brazil, and France, among others.

To learn more about this topic from a forward-looking perspective, check out this graphic on G7 government debt projections over the next five years.

He released millions of illegal aliens at the border, paroled over a million more using programs Congress never authorized, and allowed at least 2 million more to evade the Border Patrol.

That resulted in the fastest illegal influx in U.S. history. The foreign-born population now exceeds the previous high from the 1890s—over 15%.

The legacy media did its best to hide all this, habitually “gaslighting” their audience—telling many smaller lies in the hopes that eventually people will believe one big lie.

The big lie Biden and his media allies told America is that open borders bring unmitigated good. To prepare the public to swallow this, they told many little lies.

1. They Pretended Legal and Illegal Immigration Are the Same

They aren’t. Congress authorized around 850,000 legal immigrants a year, based on family relationships and labor needs. The millions Biden has paroled, released, or given “temporary” protection to under dubious programs are outside what Congress intended. And unless Congress changes it, the law should be upheld.

2. They Said Illegal Aliens Commit Fewer Crimes Than Americans

The methodology of studies claiming this is suspect, but we know some illegal aliens do commit additional crimes, every one of which is preventable if laws are enforced. One report estimates that “crime by illegal aliens … cost the country some $166.5 billion.” But the cost in victims assaulted or murdered, and a declining sense of public safety, is incalculable.

3. They Told You That All Immigrants Boost the Economy

Which ones? Those under 30 with doctorates in rocket science do. But those without a high school degree, skills, or English don’t. Almost 60% of families headed by an illegal immigrant are on a federal welfare program. Illegal aliens are less educated than U.S. citizens. Over their lifetimes, most of those let in under Biden’s border boom will be a fiscal burden to the country, not a benefit.

4. They Told You Illegal Immigrants Cost Nothing

According to one congressional estimate, illegal immigrants cost over $150 billion a year. To take but one example, the Biden administration wrote a rule forcing Americans to pay for health insurance for people here illegally. “Congress never intended that illegal aliens should receive Obamacare benefits,” said Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, after a federal court overturned Biden’s rule this week.

5. They Told You It Was Inevitable

While the Biden administration undid every effective policy of previous eras, it asked you to believe that mass illegal migration wasn’t its fault. But it was not earthquakes, wars, or feckless governments that attracted the world’s economic migrants to our borders. This week, even The New York Times admitted: “The Biden administration’s policy appears to have been the biggest factor.”

Some of us have been saying that for years. But the legacy media only turned the lights back up when their favorite team lost an election.

The people elected Donald Trump to fix Biden’s mistake. How? The recipe is clear, and with Tom Homan as border czar, the cook is in the kitchen.

1. Reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols

Also known as “Remain in Mexico,” this policy discourages fraudulent asylum claims by keeping applicants outside the U.S. until their claims are decided. We also need to conclude Asylum Cooperative Agreements with every possible country, to deal with refugee claimants closest to their homes.

2. Turn Off the Cash Spigot

Mass movement of people from the Third World to the First is facilitated by the U.N. and globalist elites—elected and unelected. Billions of taxpayer dollars have been spent to bring inadmissible aliens to and into the U.S. We can reverse the polarity of this flow by defunding nongovernmental organizations that facilitate the process and by funding law enforcement.

3. Seal the Border

Authorize Border Patrol to remove or detain illegal entrants, not process and release them. Re-activate lights, sensors, and other measures Biden’s Department of Homeland Security sidelined. Close gaps in the border wall. Barriers don’t stop everyone, but they channel illegal crossing to ports of entry. And, given that both sides of the wall are generally in the United States, we can prosecute anyone cutting or climbing it.

4. Enforce Laws in the US Interior

The Biden administration hamstrung Immigration and Customs Enforcement with prohibitions, arbitrary limits, and paperwork. Biden’s dereliction of duty has created a huge backlog in enforcement, including deportations, that needs a major effort to reduce.

5. Get States on Board

States and cities need to hand over illegal aliens in their custody to federal authorities when asked. They need to stop giving out jobs, driver’s licenses, in-state tuition, welfare, and other benefits to people here illegally.

Biden broke the border. America saw the results and voted accordingly. It’s time to restore the rule of law, the value of American citizenship, and legal immigration that puts Americans first.

(Schiff Gold)—On the latest episode of the Peter Schiff Show, Peter dives into a week of new inflation data. He calls out the shaky foundations of the so-called “strong” economy, criticizes foreign central bank policy, and explains how inflation masks the benefits of economic growth.

To start, Peter reports alarming deficit numbers for the 2025 fiscal year:

During the first two fiscal months of 2025, because we’re already in that fiscal year, the budget deficit in those two months alone was six hundred and twenty four billion dollars. That’s a 65% increase over the same two months a year ago. In fact, the first time that the United States government ran a six hundred and twenty four billion dollar deficit for an entire year, not just for two months, but for an entire year, was 2009, right after the 2008 financial crisis.

These figures clash with the official narrative that the economy is doing well. If that’s really the case, why do the American people disagree?

If consumers were in the greatest shape ever, according to this Wall Street analyst, they would have voted for Kamala. They wouldn’t have tried to get rid of her because things are supposedly so awful, and they’re hoping that Trump would change things. … It’s like you’re lying in a hospital bed, plugged into all kinds of artificial life support, tubes in your mouth, tubes in your nose, blood going intravenously into your body, and you ask the doctor, ‘What’s going on?’ ‘You’re in great shape, absolutely perfectly healthy, except if we unplug anything you’re going to drop dead.’

A hotter-than-expected inflation report released on Thursday practically demands rate hikes from the Fed, but the market still predicts the Fed will cut rates at its December meeting:

All these numbers confirm is that inflation is bottoming out and is headed much higher, and it never got anywhere near 2%. Especially if you look at the PPI (Producer Price Index), which is a leading indicator for the CPI, because generally businesses have their prices go up first and then they pass it on to the consumer second. … The expectation for the increase in November producer prices was 0.3%, and we got 0.4%. That was double the increase from the prior month of 0.2%, so we’re heading in the wrong direction fast.

Current predictions place the likelihood of the Fed cutting rates again at over 95%. This is sadly aligned with the inflationary monetary policy being implemented in Europe and the rest of the world:

Yet the Fed is going to cut rates by another 25 basis points. By the way, the ECB (European Central Bank) cut rates 25 basis points this week, and the Swiss National Bank went for a super-sized 50 basis point cut… Inflation is going to rear its head in a big way all over the world: the Eurozone, Japan, all these countries that are cutting rates should not be cutting rates. Inflation is going to roar back stronger than ever, worse than what we had in 2001, 2002.

Central banks hoodwink their citizens with inflation, obscuring economic progress for the sake of their own policy goals:

Let’s assume that all else being equal the government doesn’t create any inflation and productivity is so good that prices would have fallen by 5. Well, that’s great. That’s a huge economic benefit for the economy. …  Now the government creates inflation and instead of prices going down by 5 percent they go up by 2 percent. Now you’re going to say oh well, there’s no inflation now because now we’re at the fed’s 2 target. No! Prices are 7% higher than they otherwise would have been. We didn’t get all that inflation for free. The government robbed us of that increase in our standard of living. They took away the benefit of those price cuts.

For more analysis of last week’s economic numbers, check out Joel’s analysis on the SchiffGold Gold Wrap Podcast.