I look forward to the upcoming Hillary–Obama debates on the state of the country and the state of the economy:
President Obama, May 16:
By almost every measure, America is better, and the world is better, than it was 50 years ago, or 30 years ago, or even eight years ago. . . . Crime rates, teenage pregnancy, the share of Americans living in poverty — they’re all down. The share of Americans with college educations have gone way up. Our life expectancy has, as well. Blacks and Latinos have risen up the ranks in business and politics. More women are in the workforce. They’re earning more money.
Hillary Clinton, yesterday:
The bottom line is that too many leaders in business and government have lost sight of our shared responsibility to each other and to our nation. . . . The challenges we face are significant. It is not easy to change Washington, or how corporations behave. It takes more than stern words or a flashy slogan — it takes a plan. It takes experience and the ability to work with both parties to get results. That means we need a president who knows what we’re up against, has no illusions about what we need to do to move ahead, but can actually get it done. And that is what I am offering . . .
. . . We can’t ignore people that are still stuck on the sidelines, or working part-time when what they really want is a full-time job. Or those trapped in long-term joblessness, whether they’re veterans, workers with disabilities, people coming home from prison, or young people who tried to start their careers in the midst of the Great Recession. I particularly want young people to feel that they are going to get good jobs that will give them that ladder of opportunity that they deserve to have in America.