The U.S. economy is doing very well or very bad, depending on how you look at it.

The persistence of inflation, high interest rates, runaway deficits and growing public debt weigh on the other side of the scale. In an election year, the perception of citizens is also paradoxical: the majority consider their situation good, but that of the country bad. “I have been hearing every month that there is going to be a recession next month,” said the president of the United States, Joe Biden, last year.