Democrats’ Inflation Costing Families Hundreds of Dollars Per Month
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding inflation:
“American families are being crushed by a giant, backdoor inflation tax. And it’s been fueled in large part by Democrats’ huge mistakes.
“Month after month, families pick up the newspaper or flip on the television and hear that Democrats’ inflation is setting new 40-year records.
“Month after month, families find themselves shelling out hundreds upon hundreds of extra dollars per month just to tread water.
“Forget about saving and getting ahead; in this Democrat-run economy, working Americans have to shell out hundreds of extra dollars every month just to remain standing still.
“Even when you factor in the nominal pay raises that workers have earned, the average American worker got a 3.9% pay cut last year due to Democrats’ inflation.
“According to the Joint Economic Committee, inflation cost the average American household $635 last month alone.
“For families in Colorado, the combined effects of Democrats’ inflation and higher household spending put that number at a staggering $825. In Arizona it’s $733 extra per month. In Nevada it’s $731. For New Hampshire families it’s $653. It’s $599 in Washington state and $598 in Georgia.
“Everybody knows why this is. Food costs are up more than 10% year on year. Gas is up nearly 50%. Rent is at a 35-year high and would-be homebuyers are being squeezed between high prices and soaring interest rates.
“In my home state of Kentucky, that monthly inflation bill comes out to more than $500. Every month.
“Right before Senate Democrats spent $2 trillion last spring, the Democratic Leader said he wasn’t worried about the possibility of inflation. Now working families are paying dearly for their bad judgment.
“I hear from hardworking Kentuckians who are falling behind on home payments, or late on their utility bills, or cutting back at the grocery store. Families who are skipping summer vacation.
“Every month, the average Kentucky household now spends over $500 more than they did before the Biden presidency.
“One of my constituents from Beaver Dam, Kentucky, wrote to tell me: ‘things are looking pretty grim for me and my family right now. Everything is too expensive.’
“His family has already given up on buying chicken and beef at the grocery store. Next, they may have to stop making car payments. They are out of slack.
“Another constituent from Science Hill told me that his family is ‘maxing out credit cards to stay above water.’
“He’s watching as the Democrats who control Congress continue to advocate for more reckless spending and laments that ‘Washington does not appear to understand what's happening to our heartland.’
“A third constituent from Paint Lick is struggling, but clarifies that she is ‘not asking for a handout,’ because she doesn’t ‘believe it would help.’ After all, she writes, ‘money is not free; taxpayers must pay it back.’
“If only Washington Democrats had that much wisdom. If only our one-party government had exercised that much common sense last spring.
“Three of the most basic duties that any government owes its citizens are stable prices, public safety, and secure borders. Unfortunately for our country, the Democrats have struck out swinging.”
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