• Republicans are feeling the strain of rising costs, with more saying it's a drag on their finances.
• Those voters are feeling generally bad about the economy as key midterm elections loom.
• Voters not approving of the party in power is common; what's unclear is how it'll play out.

Republicans are feeling the high-cost crunch.

The latest consumer sentiment reading out of the University of Michigan finds that, across the board, Americans are still feeling bad. While self-identified Republicans still feel better than their Democratic and Independent counterparts, they're increasingly feeling the pinch of rising prices.

From January to October 2026, the share of Republicans citing high prices as a drag on their finances rose the most out of all political factions. It's a sign that, even as their party holds Congress and the White House, Republican voters might still be feeling the heat — especially as inflation continues to rise.

And, more broadly, Republicans seem to be souring on economic conditions. A Pew Research survey of 5,062 American adults from September 28 to October 4 found that Republicans, and those who lean Republican, were becoming less likely to say that economic conditions in the country are good.

Historically, consumer sentiment and surveys asking voters about economic conditions tend to have strong partisan correlations. Democrats are more likely to say that the economy is doing well and they're optimistic about the future when a Democrat is president; Republicans do the same when the GOP holds the White House.

The shift in Republican sentiment illustrates just how bad Americans at large are feeling about the economy. A similar downshift happened among Democrats amid the inflationary spike during President Joe Biden's term.

"President Trump has implemented an aggressive, pro-growth economic agenda that has blunted Biden's historic 40-year high inflation crisis, driven economic growth, increased wages and created private-sector jobs in areas that had been hollowed out and shipped overseas," White House spokesman Matthew Middleton said in a statement. "The President has always been clear about temporary disruptions as a result of the Iran conflict, but this administration will continue to deliver economic wins for the American people over the next two years."

While 18% of Republicans surveyed by Pew in January 2026 said that President Donald Trump's economic policies have made economic conditions worse, that share grew to 35% in October 2026. Similarly, an increasing share — 14% in January versus 25% in October — said that they expect economic conditions to be worse a year from now.

Similarly, polling from SSRS's Economic Attitudes Tracker found that Republicans are now more likely to describe the economy as bad than good — and the share of Independents who think the economy is good has plummeted to 12%, compared to a high of 25% in August 2025.

The cost concerns come as Iran War volatility — and the resulting fallout on energy prices — kept inflation high. In September, the consumer price index accelerated more than anticipated, with skyrocketing energy prices driving the increase. That means that, for the sixth month in a row, inflation has outpaced wage increases. Meanwhile, the labor market is floundering, with the country adding a paltry 29,000 payrolls in September — a far cry from the 90,000 roles economists predicted.

Midterm Election Day is a week away, and partisan sentiment around prices is shaping up to be especially important at the ballot box. Affordability messaging has become a touchpoint in swing state elections, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle clamoring to show how their policies have and will bring down everyday costs.

But the declining sentiment among even the Republican base could be a warning sign for conservatives: An Ipsos/Washington Post/ABC News poll found that, in April, 34% of respondents said they trusted Republicans to do a better job of handling the economy, compared to 33% saying the same of Democrats. As of October 13, that had flipped. Just 28% of respondents said they'd trust Republicans to handle the economy better, while 37% said they'd trust the Democrats.

Italy has hit record-high employment of over 63 percent and historic low unemployment of 6.3 percent amid a major welfare overhaul led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. By Q2 2026, the workforce expanded to 24.36 million people.

In January 2024, Italy completely replaced its old guaranteed minimum income with two targeted programs. Averaging €672/month for 690,000 vulnerable households (elderly, disabled, families with kids), as of June 2026, active benefits are tied to mandatory job training, covering over 84,000 individuals, writes La Gaceta, citing data out of Istat.

Of former welfare recipients, 60 percent transitioned to the new benefits, and 26 percent of these households had at least one member find a job in 2024. However, around 850,000 families saw their income drop by an average of €2,600 per year due to stricter welfare criteria.

Italian PM Meloni prepares for White House visit as Italy eyes EU-US free trade deal

Especially in historically lagging Southern Italy (Mezzogiorno), the results have been impressive. The region grew 8.5 percent between 2021 and 2024 and creating nearly 500,000 jobs via tourism, construction, and EU funds.

Italy’s employment rate still lags 8 percentage points behind the eurozone average, bogged down by low youth and female workforce participation.

Backed by strong employment and business resilience, Scope Ratings affirmed Italy’s BBB+ rating with a positive outlook. The agency forecasts 1 percent GDP growth, 3 percent inflation, and a reduced public deficit of 2.9 percent for 2026, noting positive consumption while low productivity remains a weak spot for the country.

Real GDP growth for 2026 for all of the EU is forecasted at 1.1 percent.

Last month, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni touted tourism and “Made in Italy” exports as key factors for helping the economy stay resilient.

The post Italy: Employment hits record high as Meloni touts tourism, ‘Made in Italy’ appeared first on Remix News.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy has unveiled a draft resolution designed to cushion the country’s wartime economic strain by pulling in qualified global talent to fill severe workforce deficits. The legislative framework outlines a structured method for evaluating international credentials and establishes a rolling registry of undermanned industries requiring immediate staffing relief.

At least 100,000 to 140,000 working-age Ukrainians have been killed since Russia invaded the country in early 2022, with some estimates for overall casualties (including wounded and missing) exceeding 500,000.

The exodus of Ukrainians from the country has not helped. In October 2025, Remix wrote about this very topic, with Ukraine’s former minister, Dmytro Kuleba, saying at the time that Ukraine may have to open its borders to Asian migrants due to the war. However, another major factor has been Ukraine’s abysmal birthrate. 

Ukraine will need foreign workers, says former minister, as country faces massive demographic crisis

The country’s fertility rate stands at 1.0 child per woman, less than half of the 2.1 replacement-level, required for a population to maintain itself without immigration.

“After the end of the conflict, Ukraine may begin to be populated with Africans and Afghans in order to prevent a demographic catastrophe,” read a 2025 interview in Focus magazine with Vladimir Paniotto, director general of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS).

Because the government’s new workforce policy is currently in the draft phase, the technical details and administrative requirements remain subject to revision prior to formal execution.

The framework is structured as a temporary pilot program. It is slated to operate for the duration of ongoing martial law and will automatically expire either two years after its inception or three months following the formal cessation of hostilities.

Ukraine faces population replacement with Third-World migrants after the war

While macroeconomic experts view the policy as a necessary admission of the country’s deep labor challenges, analysts warn that the current text focuses heavily on regulatory compliance rather than active recruitment.

Volodymyr Landa, a prominent investment specialist, pointed out that the administrative journey remains overly complex for a country that is not historically a primary hub for global migration. Candidates require extensive document translations and it remains difficult to even discover active job openings. 

Another major hurdle is that candidates face very real physical dangers when relocating to an active conflict zone.

“Ukraine is not the number one destination for international labor migration, so we need to make this journey as simple and clear as possible,” Landa told Kyiv Independent.

The post Kyiv: Facing a depleted workforce, Ukraine tries to attract migrant labor appeared first on Remix News.

The Scottish government has confirmed that around 800 public sector workers are being paid despite having no jobs. One National Health Service employee has received a full salary and benefits for 17 years despite not having an actual job. Under Scotland's policy against "compulsory redundancy," any workers whose jobs become obsolete are kept on "redeployment" lists and allowed to remain on the payroll while waiting for suitable positions. The estimated cost of paying people to do nothing is £27 million ($36 million) per year, but the actual cost to taxpayers is likely far higher, because several public bodies have refused to disclose salary information for hundreds of these workers.

The post Brickbat: Money for Nothing appeared first on Reason Magazine.