Welcome to the Second Gilded Age

Americans are grappling with economic and political inequalities, which the article terms the "Second Gilded Age," driven by policy, culture, and technology shifts since the 1970s. Census data shows nearly half of all American renters now spend over 30% of their income on housing, a record high. This period saw the weakening of antitrust laws and the dismantling of the welfare system under President Bill Clinton, replacing AFDC with TANF in 1996. The digital revolution, marked by Apple's first personal computer in 1976, eliminated repetitive jobs for roughly 60% of the American workforce, while market power concentrated wealth. These factors culminated in the rise of the MAGA movement and President Donald Trump's election, as workers without college degrees lost faith in democratic institutions.