The Patriot Post® · Bidenflation Isn't Zero

Analysis: Republican National Committee

INFLATION REMAINS AT A 40-YEAR HIGH

• With the economy in recession, historically high inflation, and taxes poised to rise on middle-class families, Biden’s relentless attack on working-class Americans is showing no signs of slowing down.
• The Consumer Price Index soared in July by 8.5 percent compared to last year, meaning inflation remained at the highest levels in 40 years.
  • Core consumer prices – excluding food and energy – rose by 5.9 percent from last year.
  • Real average hourly earnings fell 3.0 percent over the last year, marking the 16th month in a row under Biden in which inflation has outpaced wages.
  • Real wages have fallen every month since Biden and Democrats passed their wasteful $1.9 trillion “stimulus.”
• July’s Producer Price Index rose by 9.8 percent since last year.
  • This marks the 16th straight month that wholesale inflation has been above 5 percent year-over-year.
  • Core producer prices – which takes out food, energy, and trade – increased by 5.8 percent from last year.
• With the economy sinking into a recession, 69 percent of Americans say the economy is “getting worse.”
  • 59 percent of Americans say Biden and Democrats are responsible for historically high inflation.

MORE PAIN AT THE PUMP

• To deflect from his economic failures, Biden is trying to gaslight Americans into thinking they are saving on gas when in reality prices reached new record highs on his watch.
  • Nationally, average U.S. gas prices remain near $4 per gallon – $1.60 higher than when Biden took office.
  • Under President Trump, national average gas prices never once exceeded $3.00 a gallon.
• Biden’s gas hike is causing working-class Americans to make sacrifices they shouldn’t have to.
  • Carolyn Jemison, an 83-year-old retiree living on Social Security: “I can’t afford to drive my car to visit [my] kids.”
  • 64 percent of Americans report having changed their “driving habits or lifestyle” to offset high prices at the pump.
  • 52 percent of Americans say they have altered their “summer travel plans because of gas prices.”

BIDENFLATION IS COSTING FAMILIES THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS

• With Bidenflation hovering around a 40-year high, 64 percent of Americans consider themselves “financially unhealthy.”
• Even if inflation stopped rising today, Biden’s price hike would cost the average U.S. family more than $8,600 over the next year according to Congress’ Joint Economic Committee.
  • In July alone, inflation cost the typical household an extra $717.
• As prices continue to rise, millions of Americans are risking their financial security to pay their bills.
  • 48 percent of hourly workers do not have a “single cent” in emergency savings, marking a seven percent increase since last year and indicating inflation is having a “severe toll” on workers.
  • An even higher percentage – 80 percent – report having “less than $500” saved for emergencies, with workers citing “rising energy, food and housing costs” as the main factors impacting their finances.
  • Credit card debt has jumped 13 percent over the last year, marking the largest increase in more than 20 years.
• A Northwestern Mutual study found Americans now have an average of $11,000 less in savings than they did last year.

AMERICANS ARE STRUGGLING TO PUT FOOD ON THE TABLE

• Bidenflation is hitting grocery bills especially hard, forcing many Americans to either resort to store brands, cut back on essentials, or do without certain types of food altogether.
  • In July, groceries jumped 13.1 percent since last year, marking the largest increase in over 43 years.
  • Prices for eggs are up an astounding 38 percent while items like chicken, milk, and lunchmeats have soared 17.6 percent, 15.6 percent, and 18 percent, respectively.
• Nikki Jones of Monrovia, Maryland: “I definitely don’t want to be spending $1,600 a month on groceries.”
• Susan Pynchon of Colville, Washington: “Groceries are going up a heck of a lot faster than [my cost-of-living adjustment].”
• Margaret Rodgers of Queens, New York: “For the first time in my life, I am really feeling the effects of the increasing cost of food.”

AMERICANS ARE STRUGGLING TO KEEP A ROOF OVER THEIR HEAD

• Under Biden, working-class Americans are seeing the highest increase in housing and rental costs in decades, leaving many struggling to afford their mortgage or rent.
  • Rental prices are up 6.7 percent since last year, jumping at their fastest rate since 1986.
  • In June, 13.7 million Americans reported having fallen behind on their rent or mortgage payments – a 7 percent increase since April.
  • 4.6 million Americans say they are “very” or “somewhat” likely to face eviction or foreclosure in the next two months, marking a 32 percent increase since April.
• Jeannie Jansen of Wyoming, New York, who received a foreclosure notice in early July: “I busted my butt for years to have what we have. I went without heat this winter. I’ve gone without everything. And it’s still not enough because prices are so high.”
• Venus Lopez of Tucson, Arizona: “With prices of everything going up, it’s becoming a challenge to even maintain what we have. Finding an affordable apartment keeps getting more unrealistic.”

BIDEN AND DEMOCRATS SLAM WORKERS WITH HIGHER TAXES AND IRS AUDITS

• As Americans struggle to afford gas, groceries, and housing, Biden and Democrats are on a mission to raise taxes on working families and bombard them with a supersized IRS.
• Under Biden and Democrats’ bill, average tax rates would increase for nearly every income group with Americans making less than $200,000 a year facing a $16.7 billion tax increase.
  • 26.5 percent of the tax burden – about $136 billion – would fall on Americans making less than $75,000 a year according to the Heritage Foundation.
• Biden’s bill also includes $80 billion to the IRS for additional audits and an army of 87,000 new IRS agents – a policy which would target low-income and minority communities disproportionately.
  • Last year, the IRS audited Americans earning $25,000 a year at five times the rate of other groups and directed “more than half” of its audits at those making less than $75,000.
  • A 2019 study found that the five counties with the highest audit rates are all predominantly Black.

BIDEN’S RADICAL POLICIES ARE TO BLAME FOR INFLATION

• Biden’s radical tax-and-spend agenda is responsible for inflation.
  • A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco found that Biden’s $1.9 trillion “stimulus” fueled inflation.
  • Since Biden’s failed $1.9 trillion “stimulus” was passed, inflation has outpaced wages every single month.
• Marc Goldwein of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget: “We put gasoline on the fire. That’s basically what the [$1.9 trillion stimulus] did.”
• Even liberal economists say Biden’s spending fueled inflation:
  • Former Obama economic advisor Steven Rattner: “The original sin” was passing the $1.9 trillion, which has “contributed materially to today’s inflation levels.”
  • Former Obama economist Jason Furman: Biden’s spending is “too big … don’t know any economist” who supported that much.
  • Biden’s Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen: “Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus was one of the "factors that are involved in inflation.”