I hope you’re enjoying the holiday, John.
As we look back on 2021, I’d like to reflect on where we are and what we’ve done.
I know this has been a rough year. We’re still overcoming the biggest public health and economic crisis of our lifetimes. Over 800,000 people in the US have died of COVID, with over 75,000 deaths in California alone. I know people who lost their lives and you probably do, too. These aren't just statistics. They're husbands, wives, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, neighbors and friends.
Think about where we were last year. Many of our restaurants and small businesses were shut down. Millions lost their jobs. Our schools were closed. This was certainly true in my house. My wife and I have two young kids -- 9 and 7 years old -- who attend our local public elementary school, and they spent a whole school year staring at a computer screen.
Far too many in our community didn’t have enough to eat. I met constituents in line at a local food bank who used to volunteer there, never thinking that they someday might be food insecure.
But we’ve made incredible progress.
Over 200 million Americans are now fully vaccinated. Our restaurants, small businesses and schools are back open. Thanks to measures we took to fight the virus and the American Rescue Plan, our economic recovery is pushing ahead. It was reported recently that new jobless claims have hit a 52-year low. You read that correctly -- not 52 weeks, but 52 years. The number of initial jobless claims reported was the lowest number since 1969.
Over the first three quarters of 2021, real GDP increased by 7.8% -- and that’s adjusted for inflation. Nearly 6 million Americans who were unemployed at the beginning of the year have found new jobs, with the jobless rate falling from 6.3% in January to 4.2% in November. Compare these job creation numbers to the Great Recession. Back then, it took six years for unemployment to fall by a third.
Because of the monthly child tax credit, we’ve cut child poverty roughly in half. Over 125,000 families in our district alone received monthly payments that lifted over 10,000 of our local children out of poverty.
While I'm thrilled with this progress, I'm as concerned about rising prices as anyone. But I do see reasons for encouragement. Oil prices have fallen by more than 20% this past month. We'll keep pushing to address supply chain bottlenecks and labor shortages.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell recently said that broad price increases will ease substantially over the next six months. Financial markets agree. If they're right, the conditions for a very strong recovery in 2022 are in place. Employment and wages will continue to increase.
I’m particularly excited about the local jobs we’ll be creating with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This is the biggest investment in many decades for California’s roads, bridges, ports, airports, water systems, and more. These are resources I fought for to fund projects that we need in the 49th District.
I’ve been traveling to each of our cities, meeting with our local elected officials, Republicans and Democrats alike. We’ve been looking at our roads, bridges, and water systems, so that we’ll be ready to bring this much-needed funding to our communities.
We’re going to put people to work, including jobs for many without college degrees. I’m personally going to do all I can to make sure every veteran who wants a good infrastructure job can get one. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is also important for another reason. It’s proof positive that Democrats and Republicans can come together and get things done for the American people.
Everyone knows that passing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law wasn’t easy. But democracy rarely is. One of my favorite quotes is from Winston Churchill: “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”
In 2022 and beyond, I’ll keep fighting for the progress we need: protecting our environment, combating the climate crisis, standing up for our veterans, and improving the cost and quality of child care, health care, and so much more.
It’s the honor of a lifetime to serve as a member of the House of Representatives, and I won’t stop fighting for our community, every single day, for as long as I have the privilege to serve.
As always, I thank you for your support.
Mike
