It's the economy, once more

According to the numbers, the economy is doing well.  This should bode well for republicans in the upcoming elections.  But for most people, it doesn't feel like things are any better than they were before the election of the *president.  The employment rate is hovering around 4%, but as with similar figures during the Obama era, there seem to be many more unemployed and underemployed than the numbers would indicate.  The stock market is down considerably and while the connection between Wall St. and Main St. is tenuous, when stocks are down, ordinary people's confidence is shaken.  Meanwhile, the republican's vaunted tax "reform" bill, aka the tax cut for corporations and the 1% has performed like a damp firecracker.  Business investment remains anemic and there are few stories of corporations sharing their tax windfalls with workers.  How the GOP managed to get anyone to believe their tax cutting magic would supercharge the economy in the face of numerous examples of failure is beyond me.   As one pundit put it, it's hard for someone to understand an issue if his paycheck depends on him not understanding.   So, we lurch toward November with a historically unpopular president and a party in power whose only legislative accomplishment is not doing what was promised for the economy.   If I was a republican strategist, I think I would be taking a long sabbatical.