The View recently saw some controversy as fellow mods criticized co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin on the talk show after she mentioned that people are having difficulty affording housing under the Biden administration. Let’s examine how the situation unfolded and what this might say about the world around us.
The State Of The Economy And The Impact on Young Americans
The discussion started on the state of the US economy. As most people have realized, the job market is tough and layoffs are happening every day now. Even traditional strong markets like tech are seeing lots of layoffs.
Naturally, the discussion skewed towards discussing former president Trump versus Joe Biden’s administration. Trump has been garnering massive support in his bid for the Republican candidacy.
Political Discussion Over Candidates
Griffin has already noted that she thinks Trump is a threat to democracy. She’s also come out as saying she will never vote for Trump and has been promoting Nikki Haley as a potential alternative for the Republican candidacy.
Joy Behar quickly told Griffin that she and other “never-Trumpers” should consider voting for Biden. Griffin replied that she didn’t think it was fair to do so, given the state of the economy under the Biden administration.
Goldberg Mentions Biden’s Dedication to Education
Whoopi Goldberg noted that kids are paying less money out to school. As a longtime proponent of education, her happiness about this fact is supported by the student loan forgiveness pioneered under the Biden administration.
Griffin was adamant about this position and said that kids couldn’t afford houses in this economy. Unfortunately, both Goldberg and Behar noted that they couldn’t afford houses as young people either and that it was an investment.
“Get a Job.“
In response to Griffin’s statements, Goldberg said that people should “go out and get a job,” underlining the cost of living situation that many young people found themselves in. She told Griffin that, even though she was young, that was the reality of the situation.
She reinforced her point by saying that kids should know how it progressed, and she was there to let them understand how the situation broke down. People would work for their savings and then use it to buy a house. She noted that young people being unable to afford houses is not new.
Avoid Living In High Cost of Living Areas
Goldberg went on to berate Griffin by asking her where she lived. When she said New York City, Goldberg noted that it was too expensive and that no one who wanted to afford a house would live there.
Griffin countered by saying she wasn’t directly talking about herself but referring to the hundreds of thousands of young Americans who were trying to exist in a hostile financial climate. A climate, she suggests, is being sustained by the Biden administration.
Goldberg’s Opinions on Millennial Employees Are Clear
In a previous issue of The View, Goldberg slammed young people coming out of universities for their work ethic. It stemmed from discussing why so many Millennials are putting off having children or avoiding it altogether.
Her criticism of Millennials continued in this segment. “Every generation comes and wants to be better than their parents did. But I’m sorry, if you only want to work four hours, it’s going to be harder for you to get a house!” she noted.
A Disconnect With Reality
It’s apparent that the older members of this show don’t know what’s going on with the economy from the young people’s perspectives. Goldberg’s statements about young people’s work ethic show how little she knows or cares about what young people face today.
In a job market where most Millennial and GenZ employees are being bumped out of jobs by people of older generations, it’s nearly impossible to find a job, much less save to buy a house. Yet, in the interest of political expediency, it’s easy to blame young people for being young.
Biden’s Move To Control Housing Costs
Despite Goldberg and Behar pretending there’s no problem with the economy and everything, including the cost of housing, is fine, the Biden administration has recently acknowledged it’s in an unsustainable state.
The government announced that it plans to construct more houses in low-income neighborhoods to increase the supply. Advisors suggest that the price of homes will decrease with more housing available.
Deflecting Facts With Aphorisms
Griffin rightly stated that, statistically, Millennials are slated to be the first generation that is worse off than their parents. It’s unsurprising with all the debt, poor economic conditions, lack of opportunity, and unstable market conditions.
Goldberg brushed off the statement by saying, “You know what, that’s what they said to us as well.” Yet, once more, it shows how out-of-touch people her generation is. Being told that you’re worse off than your parents is one thing. Having the statistics to back it up is something else.
What Do The Facts Say?
Millennials (especially black Millennials) have lower homeownership rates than their parent’s generation. Less than half of them have jobs with a higher socioeconomic status than their parents.
The median wealth of Millennial households barely crossed $20,000. Goldberg’s generation also didn’t have the massive burden of debt that is student loans to cover, many of which fund jobs in saturated fields, making it impossible to pay off what they owe to banks and financial institutions.
Low Home Ownership is a Symptom
Homeownership for Millennials is at an all-time low, and while Goldberg might say it’s because people need to work before they can afford a house, that’s not nearly the only problem. The number of people who can afford homes in their 30s is lower than in other generations.
Homeownership numbers usually predict how well a particular cohort of an economy is doing. Yet Millennials and Gen Zs are struggling to find their footing in a harsh and unforgiving housing market. So few people own homes because they simply can’t afford to buy one. Even if they saved up, that would still be true.
