America's middle class is being hollowed out

Washington

WE WILL be hearing a lot about the middle class in the coming months. That is one sure bet for 2016, as both parties compete for votes. What is less sure is whether we will get an accurate assessment of the condition of the middle class. By now, the conventional wisdom is familiar: The top one per cent has skimmed most income gains for itself, producing decades of stagnant living standards for most Americans. Wall Street has slaughtered Main Street.

Now comes a report from the Pew Research Center that paints a more complex picture. It is not that the Pew study contradicts all the conventional wisdom. It finds (as have others) that economi…