Democrats’ Economy: Harder to Fill the Tank, Harder to Get By
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding inflation:
“In America, inflation has topped 5% every month for the past year. The consumer price index continues to hover at levels our economy hasn’t seen in four decades.
“And as we head into Memorial Day weekend, the American people have become reluctant experts in its painful, real-life effects.
“The average working family is now spending the equivalent of $5,000 a year on gasoline. A year ago, that number was $2,800. Nationwide, gas prices have risen 46.9 cents just in the last month. And in Kentucky, they’ve risen even faster.
“‘I’m getting taken full advantage of’ said one driver in Lexington. Another said, ‘It costs so much to fill up I have to do it half a tank at a time now.’
“But according to President Biden, it’s all part of what he calls a, ‘incredible transition’. That’s a heck of a way to describe his Administration’s war on the most affordable, reliable, and abundant forms of energy in America.
“Forcing fuel prices so high that it requires Americans to transition to more expensive cars with supply chains controlled primarily by China and other hostile regimes with lower labor and environmental standards is not my idea of incredible.
“But pain at the pump is only one of the tangled consequences of Washington Democrats’ radical policies and reckless spending. Depending on where you’re trying to go, higher fuel costs are hurting Americans’ ability to enjoy major summer traditions.
“Rental car costs have jumped 10.4% in the past year. Hotel rooms are going for 22.6% more. And plane tickets are up 33.3%.
“Of course, millions of Americans are having a hard enough time paying for basic expenses, let alone planning summer vacations.
“Grocery stores now stock painful surprises on every aisle. Ground coffee is 14.7% more expensive than it was a year ago. Eggs are up 22.6%.
“Anyone wanting to grill a bacon cheese burger over Memorial Day weekend will find ground beef up 15% and bacon up 18% compared to only one year ago.
“And utility bills now arrive with gut punches. For ratepayers in New England, electricity rates are projected to cost 16.4% more this summer than last summer.
“Everywhere they turn, American families are having to pare back expectations, put dreams on hold, and make bitter sacrifices.
“It’s no longer a shocking scandal. It’s just normal life in Democrats’ America: Harder to fill the tank. Harder to feed a family. Harder to get by.”
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Related Issues: House Democrats, Energy, Inflation, Economy, Senate Democrats
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