Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., tweeted Sunday a record Dow means nothing to many low-wage earners.
She tweeted in response to a report the Dow Jones Industrial Average passed a record 29,000 points for the first time Friday, just 37 days after crossing 28,000:
"The Dow soars, wages don't. Inequality in a nutshell."
Ocasio-Cortez did not expand on her comments, but Business Insider noted the Dow was up 22% in 2019, while wages grew only 2.9%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
President Donald Trump often touts the stock market's rising numbers during his presidency as a sign of a strong economy. Just before the Dow hit its Friday record Trump tweeted"
"'11,000 points gained in the Dow in the 3 years since the Election of President Trump. Today it may hit 29,000. That has NEVER happened before in that time frame. That has added 12.8 Trillion Dollars to the VALUE of American Business.' @Varneyco @FoxNews The best is yet to come!"
But critics, including Ocasio-Cortez, note that many lower-wage workers do not own stocks, and their wages have not increased, so the great economic boom is passing them by.
In February 2018, she tweeted, "The stock market is NOT the economy. Stocks aren't jobs. Stocks aren't wages.
"That's why stock prices can go up and normal people still won't feel any more secure about their future."
Responses to Ocasio-Cortez's tweet ranged from agreement to mockery.
One person tweeted a Stephen Moore column from the Heritage Foundation noting middle-class incomes are on the rise thanks to Trump policies.
Catalina Lauf, Republican candidate for Congress in Illinois, responded to the congresswoman:
"You need a course in economics 101. You are completely ignoring an important fact — 'real' wages which are adjusted for inflation are increasing. The Trump economy is helping traditionally lower wage earners, thus your statement is false and irrelevant."
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