Inflation is top priority, Biden says, slamming GOP
Category: News & Politics
Via: texan1211 • 2 years ago • 55 commentsBy: Michael Collins, Maureen Groppe and Rebecca Morin (USA TODAY)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Michael CollinsMaureen GroppeRebecca MorinUSA TODAY
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden sought Tuesday to ease fears over inflation, promising that tackling rising prices is his top domestic priority and accusing Republicans of having no plan to offer Americans relief.
"They don't want to solve inflation by lowering your costs," Biden said at the White House. "They want to solve it by raising your taxes and lowering your income."
He called inflation the nation's top economic challenge, blaming the twin challenges of a "once-in-a-century pandemic" and the war in Ukraine.
"I want every American to know that I'm taking inflation very seriously, and it's my top domestic priority," Biden said.
Americans are grappling with the worst inflation in 40 years, fueled by surges in gas, food and rent costs.
The Labor Department reported last month that the consumer price index jumped 8.5% in March from 12 months earlier, the sharpest year-over-year increase since December 1981. Including the economic figures from March, inflation has notched 40-year highs for five straight months.
To curtail the spike in inflation, the Federal Reserve raised its key short-term interest rate by half a percentage point last week and signaled further increases. Top economists expect the Fed to lift the rate as high as 2.5% to 2.75% by the end of the year from its current 0.75%-to-1% range.
U.S. stocks surged after the interest rate hike but tumbled the next day and extended their losses through Monday.
Republicans see inflation as their best issue for this year's midterm elections, pointing to polls that show inflation and the economy are top of voters' minds. A majority of adults surveyed by CNN at the end of April said Biden's policies hurt the economy. Eight in 10 said the government isn't doing enough to combat inflation.
"The more Joe Biden talks about inflation, the better it is for Republicans," said Chris Hartline, communications director for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign arm for Senate Republicans.
The committee is headed by Florida Sen. Rick Scott, whose governing plan if Republicans take control of Congress has become a prime target of Democrats - despite the fact that it has not been embraced by other GOP leaders in Congress.
In particular, Biden attacked Scott's assertion that all Americans should pay some income tax and all laws should be renewed every five years. The White House argued the former would impose a "new minimum tax on the middle class" and the latter would put Medicare and other critical programs "on the chopping block every five years."
"If Republicans want to repudiate his plan, they should go do that," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. "But otherwise, that continues to be what they're running on."
Steps the White House said Biden has taken to combat inflation include releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, working with the private sector to lower the cost of internet access for low-income Americans, freezing student loan payments and making more dependents eligible for premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
Other proposals to lower costs on health care, child care and other common expenses have not advanced in Congress.
Republicans charge high spending by Democrats is behind rising prices. Every congressional Republican voted against last year's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package that some said added too much kindling to a hot economy.
Biden rejected that argument, saying his policies helped, not hurt, the economy.
"It's not because of spending," Biden said. "We've brought down the deficit."
The deficit has dropped largely because of expiring stimulus programs and higher inflation, according to the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
Follow Collins on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS, Groppe @mgroppe and Morin @RebeccaMorin_.
Contributing: Paul Davidson
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Looks like Joe's handlers have finally become aware of inflation.
It's about time, and now that we know Joe is focused on it, it surely should end soon, right?
Here is what Joe had to say last July about it:
Sometimes it really looks like Joe is completely clueless and out of touch.
We in America got the President the majority voted for.
I wonder how many are now regretting that decision?
His handlers are finally shitting their pants for what is coming in November.
So they have too make it look like their puppet is trying
SNAFU
I bet they will count on Roe v. Wade SCOTUS decision to turn voters their way and probably hope they forget about inflation. I don't believe that will happen, much to Democrats' chagrin.
Yep.
The truth still needs to be shouted repeatedly from rooftops all over the country. SCOTUS is not talking about outlawing abortion. It’s kicking it down to the local level to decide.
If 2/3rds of America is truly pro choice, it will pass easily all over the country. No problem.
It would come as no surprise to me if some states attempt to boycott other states solely over their own versions of abortion laws.
And the Biden Administration will most likely follow suit---making a rule that no federal contracts can be made with states whose abortion laws they disagree with.
Between the wailing, gnashing of teeth, and screaming at the sky, not sure it will be heard.
I guess abortion is not a great evil then. It is a matter of choice. That is what "decide" means - to make a choice between alternatives.
We will give the "choice" about abortion to politicians but we wont give it to the women? lol.
We are at a turning point. People will either think for themselves or be the leftists useful idiots. I think the pandemic did a lot to help with that problem. Parents became much more vigilant after they saw the BS some schools were trying to get away with.
Time will tell but I still have faith people will see the light. Especially as badly as Biden has lied to them.
Politicians we all elected to serve as our representatives.
I see that you disagree with the concept of legislating a set of enforceable rules of conduct versus allowing individuals to make their own rules.
At least you're keeping your sense of humor about it.
Lol .... politicians at the local level are much more representative of the people John ..... significantly more than nine unelected judges but hey, that’s just my opinion. I could be wrong.
Women do get a choice John:
Has someone removed their right to vote for the politician of their choice?
Is someone restricting their freedom to travel; and forcing them to live in states that have abortion laws that they do not agree with?
Is anyone barring them from their right to peaceful protest?
What is a matter John, are Democrats afraid of free and fair elections that end in the result of the will of the people? Or do they only feel safe when they can restrict who people can vote for; try to disenfranchise voters by counting people instead of the amount of voters when setting districts; and set lax vote gathering and counting standards and regulations that favor them, while casting suspicion on the election results?
I think he’s probably mostly right about Covid being the primary driver of inflation. However, I don’t see how anything he is proposing would fix it.
A cause? Sure. The primary cause? Doubtful.
All the “free money” given out the last decade old so is. Biden’s name is all over much of that money but his biggest failing is hesitation. Inflation has been climbing consistently his entire presidency and he’s just responding now? Over a year later?
Fail .... huge fail.
Well, as long he’s going to keep blaming it all on Putin , you can be sure it won’t get any better. I’m no fan of Putin, but as much of an agent of chaos as he is, he isn’t that influential. And you can’t solve a problem if you don’t understand it.
No argument. They are betting the health of the county on spin and most Americans are not dumb enough to fall for it.
In the meantime all Americans are suffering because of it. A shortage of baby formula is the USA? Never thought I’d hear such a thing in the USA.
Did anyone hear Joe's ridiculous speech?
Will somebody please tell him that Rick Scott is from Florida not Wisconsin and that he was the Governor of Florida.
BTW Joe, few Republicans had any interest in or support for Scott's tax plan. Good luck selling the BS to all the Americans you hurt.
Well, he managed to spit out the latest insult to the MAGA king.
So he’s got that going for him .......
They are in a tough spot where all they have is name calling.
About nine months too late Little Joey.
Transition that.
I suppose 5 months of record-setting inflation is too much for even the Biden Administration to ignore.
Or was it the polls showing voters' main concerns being inflation?
I wonder if Joe should announce an "Inflation Czar" ala his "Border Czar" fiasco??
He should thank and praise Joe Manchin. If BBB with it borrowed stimulus was being spent now inflation would b e growing even faster.
Joe thinks the massive government spending is the solution, not any part of the problem.
We're here to help you.
When a liberal tells me that, I always check to make sure I have my wallet secured.
My job, pre-COVID, required me to go on Capital Hill 1-3 times per year, I always made sure my wallet was in a front pants pocket on those days. Great Senate bean soup though.
How many showers did you need to feel clean after that.
It’s a dirty job but somebody has to do it. My funniest experience was when a Senator requested a briefing on why the Army was terminating a equipment program. When I was seated, he opened with:
“I want to make sure that you understand that I have some questions for you in my interests on national defense and it has nothing to do with the coincidence that the manufacturer is in my state.”
I replied, “We appreciate your interest in national defense, Senator.”
Its the Republicans fault that Democrats control Congress and the White House I guess.
I believe the House will be lost by the Democrats without a doubt, and a good chance that they lose the Senate, too.
At least some brakes can be put on this bumbling Administration.
Melodrama is a key part of the Democrat platform.
Anger seems to be their go-to emotional response to almost everything.
Joe is a complete fucking idiot. He just described his party. It is Democrats that raise taxes. The only plan that Biden has is dump a few trillion more dollars onto the inflation dumpster fire with Build Back Better; and raise taxes on whomever the Democrats consider "wealthy" (The definition of "wealthy" changes as often as whomever they are pissed off at.). For Republicans to raise taxes on the 61% of Americans that didn't pay taxes in 2021- they would have to start paying federal taxes first!
For Democrats the more people on big government's dole the better.
We all know securing the southern border and ending the flow of illegals into our country sure as hell isn't. Seems that Joe doesn't think dumping more US tax payer money into processing more people on the government dole is adding to inflation. He is bringing in more consumers; but it doesn't look like more workers with all of the job openings and staffing shortages. They are here for the "free shit"; and Democrats have a lot of "shit" to offer.
Only Biden would think that lowering deficits because of higher inflation is a good thing.
I hope it would be true, but am afraid it is not.
Useful idiots will parrot what Joe was told to say.
Sounds like the crux of the problem.
I actually heard a sound bite where Biden said they brought down the debt. I really hate when they conflate debt with deficit... that's so politician like..
The same folks who claimed that a 10% budget increase was really a DECREASE because the budget asked for was 15% higher, not 10%.
DC math.
With inflation, it may turn out be be decrease in ‘real’ dollars after all.
Biden is a lost banana.
And he’s got angry old man disease ....
You know what we never really hear anymore?
Liberals touting the fantastic Biden/Harris economy.
Gee, I wonder why that stopped when the polls started showing voters caring and worrying about the economy and rising inflation?
There are still a few of those idiots out there.
I haven't seen much of them lately.
Maybe because when I do see the leading cheerleader for the Biden economy now, I always ask about it to see if I can get an answer, but he usually just runs off.
I guess interest rates and high inflation is all part of Biden's wonderful economic plan.
I wonder how many voters he'll be able to bamboozle with his bullshit?
The one I see usually trolls for a while then drops an idiotic comment that "biden's doing fine" then she scurries off.
NEVER underestimate the brainlessness of the left. The whole country could be in disarray and they'd still vote for Democrats. Oh, wait...
Sadly, I fear too many Democrats don't even recognize what inflation even is.
But I have no doubt they think Biden can fix it, even though he, as usual, is arriving late to the party.
There seems to be a real disconnect between Democrats and what voters are concerned about.
Maybe Joe Biden finally discovered that deficit spending has gotten a lot more expensive. The non-discretionary cost of outstanding Federal debt will approach the size of the defense budget if this continues much longer. New Federal debt isn't cheap any longer.
I don’t think either approach will do much. The whole world has a pretty massive supply problem, and that will inevitably drive up costs for all sorts of things. Biden can’t just magically lower costs to solve it, and I don’t think messing with taxes will do anything either.
True but he could have done much better. Like being a better friend to the fossil fuel industry. Energy is a major driver of inflation when those costs go up.
He’s screwed that pooch in a very big way and he owns it.
Democrats are about to have their asses handed to them and suddenly now they want to take care of inflation. And how will they do that? By taxing and spending more.
April report coming out in a few minutes. Will it be double digits or will that come later in the summer.
Can someone explain why it took so long for rising inflation to be of concern to the WH?
Almost a year later, and NOW we get "it is my top priority" bullshit from Joe.
Giving up on Build Back Better took longer than expected?
Joe is still touting that as a good plan!
Election year + polling data = Time to pretend they give a shit about the things voters actually care about.