STEPHEN MOORE: It’s A Wonderful President

I’ve been shocked that Americans are in such a grump mood as reflected in all the public opinion polls.

What a paradox: at the same time we have peace and prosperity: including more income, more wealth, more of almost everything that we want to buy (yes, except for housing), Americans seem to think we have an “affordability crisis.”  In 2025 the median household income in the U.S. has risen to more than $86,000 a year – an all-time high.

Every income group and every ethnic group is richer today than ever before. Hispanics now have a median household income above $70,000, which would make them rich in most countries where they or their parents came from.

This upward slope of living  standards has been the norm throughout our history as a nation, but this past year has been one of the blockbusters with incomes rising almost twice as fast as inflation.

It hasn’t happened by accident. It’s happened because at the start of 2025 we had a regime change in Washington.  In Donald Trump we have a president whose common sense economic, education, energy, environmental and financial policies have worked.

I don’t agree with all the policies – such as some of the high tariffs, which are a mixed bag at best.

But few presidents have recorded more achievements and positive results in one year as Trump.

Here are some of them as we round out Trump 2.0, year one:

• Median family income after inflation has risen by $1,250.

• Incomes of the bottom 25% have risen after inflation.  This is not a “rich getting richer, poor getting poorer story.” It’s a “rising tide that lifts all boats” story.

• The wealth of the average family in their 401k plans is UP by an average of $21,000 – reversing a more than $20,000 real decline under Biden.