Richard Fisher: I Don't Think We Have a Thriving Middle Class

In sharing his thoughts on the latest jobs data from ADP, Former Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher says the key number is small and medium size businesses.

RICHARD FISHER: Well, the key numbers on that little screen you had there are small- and medium-sized businesses. If you add those together, you got 140,000. This is where America works. By the way, this is not what's traded in the S&P 500. 82 percent of the employment in this country is small- and medium-sized businesses. Some big businesses, but doesn't trade within the S&P. That's where you get this disconnect between what's happened in the stock markets and the bearishness in the market and the concerns in the market, and what's happened in the underlying economy.

But Ken [Langone] made a very good point, in addition to wearing the same shirt that I'm wearing, earlier...If you look at the middle-income quartiles, we didn't announce this at the Dallas Fed going back 15 years, the lowest-income quartile has done well, well the highest-income quartile, thanks to zero interest rates and monetary policy ,have done enormously well. Middle-income quartiles have not had jobs created or income increased for over 15 years. It's just beginning now.

ANDREW ROSS SORKIN: Do we have a thriving, because we've had this debate, do you believe there's a thriving middle class in America right now?

FISHER: I don't.