Thunder From Under
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Early voting in the 2022 Hamilton County primary begins in a month, so is county commissioner candidate Tucker McClendon right to offer a bonus for teachers and school workers in this moment ? I’m for the teachers and I’m not accusing anyone of anything, but Tucker is the outgoing school board president. His proposal for a $500 bonus for full-time employees and $250 for part-time staff couldn’t come at a more inopportune time with his name on the ballot.
McClendon’s reasoning is that with inflation and soaring gas prices, Hamilton County Department of Education employees need a boost. He would finance the bonus with money from the “bad days”, but this money does not belong to the school board.
It belongs to the taxpayers who are also battling the same inflation and gas pumps and, like employees of other Hamilton County departments, would not mind a little boost as well.
Teachers’ salaries should only be managed in the annual budget, not by any political candidate – no matter how pure of thought or desire for a vote. The school board has no money to give; it emanates from the county commissioners who are entrusted by the citizens. With some commissioners also in contested races, they would be put in a difficult position if the school board came forward with such a proposal.
McClendon crossed the commission earlier on new districts. After the county voted to expand to 11, Tucker wanted to keep only nine for schools, which would have been grossly unfair to the newly created citizens of Districts 10 and 11. His proposal was ignored, of course. , and two new school board members will be added to the current nine.
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THIS WON’T GET IMPROVED SOON
Here is an excerpt from Nashville’s “The Daily Wire” website:
THE TOPLINE – New data from the Labor Department shows inflation continued to soar last month, reaching levels not seen since 1981, as prices for vital goods soared across the board. (yes, that was 41 years ago.)
THE NUMBERS — Each month, the Department of Labor releases data on the “Consumer Price Index,” which basically measures the price of common goods that people buy for daily living, such as food, gasoline and health care. He found that in the past year alone, the cost of these goods has increased by 7.9%, which is the biggest annual jump since 1982 (yes, that’s 40 years ago).
Gasoline prices have risen 38% over the past 12 months, while food prices have risen 8.6% over the past 12 months, the biggest increase since 1981. Food prices in restaurants also just saw its largest 12-month increase since 1981. Costs rose 4.7% over the past year, the largest increase since 1991.
WHAT TO EXPECT — White House press secretary Jen Psaki warned Wednesday that they expect the situation to get worse in March, particularly in the energy sector, as well as in travel and restaurants. As prices rise, people have to spend more money in their day-to-day lives. The average American spent 15.7% more on debit and credit cards last month than the same month last year.
Today, a growing number of economists are predicting a recession by the end of 2022. Kevin Hassett, the former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, said this week: “We now believe in the chances of a recession starting in the second quarter of 2022. increased to 60 percent.
Economists also increasingly expect that as inflation and consumer prices continue to soar, the Federal Reserve will respond by raising interest rates, which has historically led to a recession. .
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THREAT OF STAGFLATION RISES Amid UKRAINE’S WAR
THE TOPLINE – Russia’s attack on Ukraine had an immediate impact on the US economy, and there may be longer-term effects yet to be seen.
QUOTE OF THE DAY — “Recession risk is on the rise.” – Joseph Lavorgna, former chief economist of the National Economic Council
THE U.S. ECONOMY – While the U.S. is currently seeing wage growth of around 5% – which is generally considered healthy – when adjusted for inflation, the actual figure is actually lower . The risk of recession has increased and the longer food and energy prices remain high, the greater the risk of recession.
Remember: stagflation occurs when the rate of inflation is higher than the actual growth rates of the economy.
The Federal Reserve plans to raise interest rates, and Americans are already feeling the impact, even though the Fed hasn’t moved. Mortgage rates have increased by a hundred basis points, which is another important factor in the stock market. 401k are down and it is possible that they will go down much more if the economy goes into a recession.
IN BRIEF – DON’T SPEND A ONE – With the recession setting in, it would be pretty silly to give bonuses to teachers and school workers if, in a recession, there were layoffs. Focus on maintaining jobs.
