Biden’s Inability To Tackle ‘White-Hot Inflation’ Cripples Families’ Budgets

President Biden Boasts About His Reckless Spending, ‘We’re Changing People’s Lives!’

PRESIDENT BIDEN: “I don’t want to hear any more of these lies about reckless spending. We’re changing people’s lives!” (President Biden, Remarks to AFL-CIO, 6/14/2022)

Democrats Certainly Have Changed People’s Lives: ‘White-Hot Inflation’ Is Costing American Households An Additional $460 Per Month According To A New Estimate

“White-hot inflation has forced the average American household to cough up an extra $460 per month, as surging prices for food and fuel put family budgets across the nation under strain. Moody’s Analytics senior economist Ryan Sweet calculated the figure based on data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that showed the Consumer Price Index had jumped 8.6% in the 12-month period ending May 31 – the largest increase since December 1981. Sweet compared average US household spending in May to what would have been spent in 2018 and 2019, when annual inflation averaged 2.1%. ‘Having inflation at 8.5% on a year-ago basis, compared with the 2.1% average growth in 2018 and 2019, is costing the average household $346.67 per month to purchase the same basket of goods and services as they did last year,’ Sweet told The Post. ‘However, the pure cost for households for having inflation running at 8.5% is $460.42 per month.’” (“Inflation Costing Americans An Extra $460 Per Month, Analysis Says,” New York Post, 6/10/2022)

‘The Problem Appears To Be Accelerating … Americans Are Feeling The Price Hikes Across The Board’

“If anything, the problem appears to be accelerating. Prices rose 8.6 percent in May, the highest level in 40 years, according to the latest consumer price index released Friday. Moreover, prices climbed more quickly last month than they did in April, denting the optimism in the White House that the country had already hit its inflationary peak. Gas prices, the most visible sign of spiking prices, have skyrocketed … But Americans are feeling the price hikes across the board: the cost of food, shelter, airfare, medical care and clothing have all increased. And as prices continue to rise, economic head winds are overshadowing and redirecting the president’s agenda on all fronts.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

Gas Prices Nationwide Have Exceeded $5 A Gallon

“For the first time ever, the average gas price across the U.S. is $5 a gallon. On [June 11^th], the AAA reported the $5 nationwide average – which comes amid a surge in fuel costs, with record-breaking prices over the past few months. The national average gas price jumped 19 cents in the past week. And prices at the pump are up $1.93 from this time last year.” (“$5 A Gallon For Gas? Prices At The Pump Reach New High For Nationwide Average, Aaa Says,” Usa Today, 6/11/2022)

‘A String Of Troubling Inflation Reports’ Is Leading The Federal Reserve To Consider Larger-Than Expected Rate Increases

“A string of troubling inflation reports in recent days is likely to lead Federal Reserve officials to consider surprising markets with a larger-than-expected 0.75-percentage-point interest rate increase at their meeting this week. Before officials began their pre-meeting quiet period on June 4, they had signaled they were prepared to raise interest rates by a half percentage point this week and again at their meeting in July. But they also had said their outlook depended on the economy evolving as they expected. Last week’s inflation report from the Labor Department showed a bigger jump in prices in May than officials had anticipated. … The Fed last raised rates by 0.75 percentage point at a meeting in 1994, when the central bank was rapidly raising rates to pre-empt a potential rise in inflation.” (“Fed Likely to Consider 0.75-Percentage-Point Rate Rise This Week,” The Wall Street Journal, 6/13/2022)

Meanwhile, President Biden Has Reportedly Spent A Lot Of Time Over The Last Few Weeks Whining About His Standing On The Economy And Getting Angry Over His Administration’s Failures To Do Anything About Inflation

“Amid a rolling series of calamities, Biden’s feeling lately is that he just can’t catch a break. ‘Biden is frustrated. If it’s not one thing, it’s another,’ said a person close to the president…. Biden has vented to aides about not getting credit from Americans or the news media for actions he believes have helped the country, particularly on the economy.” (“Inside A Biden White House Adrift,” NBC News, 5/31/2022)

“The White House launched a new push Tuesday to contain the political damage caused by inflation after President Biden complained for weeks to aides that his administration was not doing enough to publicly explain the fastest price increases in roughly four decades…. The flurry of activity comes after Biden has privately grumbled to top White House officials over the administration’s handling of inflation, expressing frustration over the past several months that aides were not doing enough to confront the problem directly, two people familiar with the president’s comments said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.” (“White House Scrambles On Inflation After Biden Complains To Aides,” The Washington Post, 5/31/2022)

“President Joe Biden and his aides have grown increasingly frustrated by their inability to turn the tide against a cascade of challenges threatening to overwhelm the administration. Soaring global inflation. Rising fuel prices…. In crisis after crisis, the White House has found itself either limited or helpless in its efforts to combat the forces pummeling them. Morale inside 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is plummeting amid growing fears that the parallels to Jimmy Carter, another first-term Democrat plagued by soaring prices and a foreign policy morass, will stick…. [White House aides] also increasingly are trying to soothe the greatest source of West Wing frustration, coming from behind the Resolute Desk.” (“Biden Wants To Get Out More, Seething That His Standing Is Now Worse Than Trump’s,” Politico, 6/05/2022)

“President Biden seemed upbeat when he visited an Iowa biofuels plant in April to talk about bringing down gas prices … But privately, Biden dismissed the policy as ineffective and questioned the value of the trip, according to two people familiar with the conversations. After returning to the White House, he hauled his senior staff, including chief of staff Ron Klain, into the Oval Office, badgering them with questions about the purpose of the event…. The episode illustrates the White House’s months-long challenge to dampen rising prices, and the president’s increasing frustration with his administration’s inability to do so. The problem has ballooned over the last year, consuming the president’s top aides and threatening his domestic agenda, his international priorities and his party’s political prospects. ‘Inflation is the bane of our existence,’ Biden said last week on Jimmy Kimmel’s show…. Biden is increasingly voicing his anger internally.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

Concluding ‘There Is Little They Can Do To Affect Prices,’ The White House Keeps Reinventing Its Messaging Strategy, ‘But The Messaging Push Has Not Yielded Any New Direct Measures To Lower Costs’

“As administration officials increasingly conclude there is little they can do to affect prices, they are at least trying to change their messaging — for example, touting the positive indicators in the economy, chiefly a near-record-low unemployment rate. But as Americans grapple with the rising costs of everyday items, the argument does not seem to be resonating.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

• “The White House made a fresh push last month to show that Biden and his team were hard at work trying to rein in inflation. The president met with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell in the Oval Office and penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, while the White House sent officials across the cable networks to outline the actions the administration was taking. Biden and his aides have also taken to attacking Republicans more vigorously … But the messaging push has not yielded any new direct measures to lower costs.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

• “The administration has also struggled to explain how long Americans should expect to see rising prices, giving an inaccurate sense that the rapid price increases would subside relatively quickly. When prices first start increasing markedly last year, Biden and others suggested it was the result of the economy’s rapid reopening after the pandemic and would fade as the economy stabilized. The price hikes ‘are expected to be temporary,’ Biden said in July 2021, a prediction echoed by top aides who promised inflation would be ‘transitory.’ In recent months, these officials have changed their tune …” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

And So The White House Keeps Pointing Fingers Ever More Frantically In A Desperate Attempt To Blame Someone Else

“In a speech Friday at the Port of Los Angeles, Biden renewed an attack on large corporations for ostensibly keeping prices high to boost profits, saying that made him so mad he wanted to ‘pop’ someone. ‘Exxon made more money than God last year,’ Biden said. ‘Exxon — start investing and start paying your taxes.’ … But there is little evidence any of this is working.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

“At the Port of Los Angeles Friday, Biden framed inflation as a sweeping global problem, driven by the persistence of the pandemic and Russia’s ongoing invasion, and he touted his administration’s efforts to improve supply chains.” (“Inside Biden’s Frustration With Soaring Prices,” The Washington Post, 6/13/2022)

“The administration … plans to sharpen its attacks on Republicans …” (“Biden Wants To Get Out More, Seething That His Standing Is Now Worse Than Trump’s,” Politico, 6/05/2022)

Incredibly, Some Members Of The Biden Administration Are Still Claiming That The White House Didn’t Miss Anything On Inflation

JARED BERNSTEIN, Member of the Council of Economic Advisers: “Well, first of all, we’re having an inflationary story in every advanced economy in the globe, and in fact, inflation is historically elevated everywhere. So it is certainly not just one country’s fiscal or monetary policy.”
CNBC’s ANDREW ROSS SORKIN: “But then the question is, what did the White House miss [on inflation]? And what is the lesson of that?”
BERNSTEIN: “I don’t think the White House missed much at all [on inflation]…” (CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” 6/13/2022)

WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: “[W]e are coming out of the strongest job market in American history, and that matters. And that — a lot of that is thanks to the American Rescue Plan, which only Democrats voted for that — Republicans did not — and it led to this economic boom — this historic economic boom that we’re seeing with jobs.”
REPORTER: “Didn’t it also lead to historic inflation?”
JEAN-PIERRE: “No. That is not —”
REPORTER: “No?”
JEAN-PIERRE: “That is — that is — that is not — that is not how we’re seeing the American Rescue Plan.” (White House Press Briefing, 6/13/2022)

CNN’S DON LEMON: “[T]he economists do cite the war in Ukraine and supply chain issues. We did have that before the war, supply chain issues. They also say that last year’s stimulus package, which you mentioned, contributed to inflation, Karine. Does the Biden administration bear some responsibility for this?”
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: “So, first of all, the American Rescue Plan met the moment, and it has put us in a place where we can actually put us in a place where the American people feel -- can actually -- we can take on inflation.” (CNN’s “Don Lemon Tonight,” 6/13/2022)