Who's stressed?(CORRESPONDENCE)(Letter to the editor)

ROBERT KUTTNER ["WHAT'S the Matter with Class," July/August] criticizes my argument that most Americans don't have a fundamental economic interest in voting Democratic by arguing that two-thirds of Americans are "economically stressed." Unfortunately, the data he cites to support his claims are not correct.

First, the real incomes of husband-wife couples in the middle-income quintile have risen substantially (not "barely stayed even") from $58,588 in 1979 to $71,449 in 2004. This 22-percent increase was largely due to the increased wages and work ...

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