Are You Better Off Than You Were Before?

During the 1980 election campaign, GOP presidential candidate Ronald Reagan scored points with voters by asking, “Are you better off than you were four years ago?” Until this year, the Bush Administration has sounded a similar theme.

Now, with the 1992 presidential campaign about to get under way, it’s the Democrats’ turn to ask that question. Here are three separate measures of economic well-being and a breakdown of income-distribution in the United States which offer some evidence to help decide whether it’s true, as Democrats charge, that “the rich have gotten richer and the poor have gotten poorer” during President Bush’s years in office. The 1990 data represent the latest year for which figures are available. Median Family Income 1967: $31,043 1990: $35,353 Per Capita Income 1967: $9,642 1990: $14,387 Per Capita Disposable Income 1967: $6,730 1990: $11,509 Source: U.S. Department of Commerce