Executive Director @EconomicSecProj & @ESP_Action. Alum @RooseveltInst
Brooklyn, NY
Joined January 2009
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Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
This is right, and I'll say that I pointed out a year ago (when we started our affordability work) that there was a clear path to synthesize all the populist/abundance arguments into a cohesive whole.
I see that with the new wave of Senators much more than I expected.
BUT! /1
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
This has been one of the operating theories of my career: Millennials bring a fundamentally generational sense that better things are possible into everything they do.
AOC: A note for Gen Z. If you want to understand millennial cringe, what you all call millennial cringe, this earnestness, imagine all the seats we flipped last night. That feeling, plus, on top of it, electing the first Black president ever. And on top of that, you did it the first time you ever voted. That hits generationally. You’ve been chasing that feeling ever since.
And because you did it the first time you ever voted, you’re like, ‘Yeah, we can change the world. Why not? We did it the first time. Let’s just do it again.’
👇🏻Priority #1: get to work and don’t screw this up.
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
The biggest swing in youth vote choice for Congress in decades. Dems +46 with Gen Z voters.
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
at @voxdotcom I wrote about how health care costs have come to dominate the midterm election, topping even housing, utilities and groceries as a top economic concern
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
5 things to know about Gen Z voters before Tuesday
1. Top issues: economy, war, corruption
2. The gender gap is closing, but young men aren't liberal
3. Youth turnout could surge in states like TX, GA, MI, NC
4. 1st-time voters were 8-years-old when Trump was elected
5. They're looking for results geared toward people their age, i.e. policies around rent, healthcare, childcare
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
New post: I used to be obsessed with ECI (2021-2023). Now I just forgot about its new drop today until @EconBerger pointed out it's a window into the affordability crisis.
Employers’ hourly health insurance costs are growing twice as fast as wages under Trump: 6.4% vs 3.1%. /1
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
many elites are exhausted by healthcare debates, but the health care costs = top, top priority for voters this cycle.
I wrote about why the political backlash is just getting started vox.com/policy/508136/health…
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
Yes, consumer spending has been robust. You could even call it strong.
But many people are spending more $$ than they bring in each month. The savings rate is falling. Credit card debt is at a record high. Personal bankruptcies are up. Personal loans are way up.
There's clearly strain on a lot of Americans.
Personal income in September: +0.2%
Personal spending in September: +0.5%
Inflation-adjusted spending in Sept: FLAT (0%)
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
On the heels of a hot inflation report, a new overview piece from me on how the Trump administration's actions have made affordability much worse.
Hard numbers on what families and voters are facing in this economy, and a useful guide for those needing to prewrite anything... /1
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
PCE inflation broken down by contribution. Core services and housing alone are about 2.5 percentage points of inflation across different windows.
Over the past 12 months, inflation has been a full percentage point higher than it was in 2024. Things have gotten worse.
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
If you read one thing today to understand the midterms it should be this @washingtonpost story that does an analysis of how Costs outpaced Wages in these GOP-held battlegrounds districts. bit.ly/4koCKeK
"In the battleground districts, 60 percent of households did not earn enough income to cover the full cost of housing, food, transportation, health care, child care and taxes"
“Inflation burns; it literally does, and it makes it harder making ends meet. But also, you get this sense of injustice, and I think that’s the political side of it.” @DianeSwonk Chief Economist, @KPMG_US
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
So interesting and important!
My pet theory is that it is related to rise of two-earner couples: Life isn't built for this crowd being parents (certainly not of 3 kids!) w/o complex and increasingly costly care infrastructure. So people who aren't in the top are priced out.
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
What distinguishes the 1% from the merely affluent? How about having a third child.
New post on a topic I've long been fascinated by (the economics and financing of having a third kid) where I finally felt bold enough to go into the latest SCF microdata to get a good answer. /1
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
Very excited to have this live! I think it brings together important priorities in housing that can serve as a basis after this moment.
Check it out, I also have a quick blog recap in the next link. /1
1/ Today, ESP released Building Affordability, our new policy agenda on housing, which tackles the two causes of unaffordability: broken markets and broken incomes.
Written by @chao_becky, @Mtkonczal, and @resnikoff, it shows how policy can expand supply while also directly protecting tenants.
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
Working families are facing an affordability crisis. Rising costs, hidden fees, and a tax system that was not built for them are making it harder to get ahead.
Our partners at Economic Security Illinois Action just wrapped up a big session in Springfield fighting back against exactly that.
See what they won for working families.
economicsecurity.us/news/wha…
🎉 The Illinois legislative session is a wrap. And we have a lot to celebrate.
Working families in Illinois have been squeezed by rising prices and corporate greed. This session, we fought back—and we won:
✅ Hidden junk fees are banned. After three years of advocacy, HB 228 passed. The price you see is the price you pay. No more hidden “convenience” or “processing” fees at checkout.
✅Illinois now has the ability to support local guaranteed income initiatives like the Newborn Equity Support Transfer (NEST), laying the foundation for future investments in economic security.
These victories were made possible by our coalition partners, advocates, parent leaders, and community members who showed up, spoke out, and refused to back down.
This is what fighting for working families looks like. And our fight continues.
Read our full statement here: 🔗
economicsecurity.us/news/wha…
Thank you to our partners @COFIOnline @LIFTCommunities @Move_UpTogether @ChiTrust @StartEarlyorg @FoodDepository @newmomschicago @latinopolicy @LeagueWomenVote @IllinoisStand @ChicagoVotes @actnforchildren
And legislators @SenatorAquino @RepBobMorgan @RepKellyCassidy @graciela4senate
Taylor Jo Isenberg retweeted
For DAME Magazine's Repairing America series, I spoke to experts about addressing affordability through policies like universal childcare, expanded child tax credit, unionization, wage increases, & more. damemagazine.com/2026/05/13/…
