RESPONSIBLE ONES CAN:

Conservative populists commonly argue that typical male workers today have great difficulty supporting their families, whereas in the past they could do so much more easily. Is that true?

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that from 1990 to 2019 the median male worker's wages grew by 23%. The bottom 10% of male workers saw their wages increase by 36% over this period. Male workers in the 20th percentile -- those who earn more than the bottom 19% but less than the top 80% -- had 30% wage growth. 

All these figures are adjusted for inflation. That is, they account for increases in the prices of housing, health care, education and transportation -- Cass's four categories -- but also for the prices of many other goods and services. 

The upshot: It is hard to argue that price increases are overwhelming the wage gains of male workers. 

I focus on male workers because they are the focus of the populist critique of capitalism. Household income presents both a fuller and more upbeat picture of how American families are faring. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, after accounting for inflation, federal taxes and government transfer payments, the median U.S. household enjoyed a 44% increase in income from 1990 to 2016, the most recent year for which data are available. Households in the bottom 20% saw their income increase by two-thirds over this period. 

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