Many members of the news media were blindsided by the results of the 2024 elections. Their coverage was utterly detached from the issues voters care about. The economy was treated as an afterthought among wealthy Democrats who make up most of the population of legacy media newsrooms and TV production meetings.

On the Friday before the election, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its October jobs report. A gain of 108,000 jobs had been expected, but the actual number was just 12,000. It was the worst jobs report since the pandemic. The private sector lost 28,000 jobs while government growth added 40,000 public sector employees. So, the productive sector of the economy was a shrinking employer while the unproductive sector was expanding. It was the rotten cherry on the spoiled sundae that was the economy under President Joe Biden.