Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris joined Stephanie Ruhle on MSNOW's Money Power Politics on Friday morning, November 6 to discuss the recent stock market gyrations in response to the 2026 midterm elections and the Bureau of Labor Statistics' October jobs and unemployment report.
Watch the video here:
Seth made the point that the midterm elections will mean that communities that have long lacked power, including a lot of rural communities, will have the chance to fight for a fair deal with the tech companies that want to build data centers seemingly everywhere without regard for the consequences. Five new Democratic governors, five new Democratic "trifectas" (i.e., one party controls the executive and legislative branches), and the end of five Republican trifectas send a powerful message that regulation to ensure fairness and widely shared economic growth is coming, at least in some states.
Seth and Stephanie also discussed the October jobs and unemployment report, which showed solid jobs growth and some other positive signs. But Seth emphasized that while wages rose in October, they still are not keeping up with rising prices. Every poll showed that inflation, gas prices, and the cost of living were the top issues for voters before Tuesday's epochal election.
And no, Seth was not upset about the hair joke at the end of the segment. He knows.