Politicians have plenty of time off. Should they judge how much the rest of us should work?
But I don't love that this has suddenly a campaign issue. It's high risk, low reward. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only about 5% of American workers hold down more than one job -- a figure that has remained steady for the last decade, under presidents of both parties.
It's also nobody's business how many jobs we have, or why we choose to have them. What if we want to start another career, or earn extra money, or learn new skills, or find a productive way of spending our free time? Why does the government have to put in its two cents about what we do with our time-- and where we do it?
Ben Shapiro said as much a few weeks ago. He insisted that -- for people who have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet -- this constitutes a "you problem," not a problem for politicians to solve. The liberal Twitterati tore into the conservative radio host, unfairly twisting his words to suggest that he was telling people: "You're the problem."
That's a cheap shot. Shapiro later made clear that he admires people who hold down more than one job. He has a half-dozen jobs himself. Meanwhile, other radio and television personalities are holding down seven or eight.
Are we supposed to feel sorry for these folks? Not me. I envy them. They've earned our respect. What they do is not easy. You have to be a good juggler. Luckily, that skill set comes in handy in a job market that can be a real circus.
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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com.
(c) 2019, The Washington Post Writers Group
