Joe Biden, ice cream cone once again in hand, was asked this past weekend about the state of the economy. Biden once again responded with a remarkably out-of-touch, braggadocious “strong as hell.”
But is it? Recent polling from Scott Rasmussen tells us that over 60 percent of Americans believe that they will have to face increasing inflation for months to come. This is on top of the months of record inflation Americans have dealt with since the last time Biden held court with the media at an ice cream parlor.
Clearly, Americans do not trust Joe Biden’s economic policies to deliver relief anytime soon whether at the pump, the grocery store, or practically anywhere else. But out of control federal spending continues to fuel price hikes and will continue to be a burden on the American people. This begs the question: Will the next Congress get their act together? The Biden administration has had the opportunity to revitalize our energy independence and strengthen our nation’s fragile supply chain, but the administration’s actions are antithetical to restoring our nation’s economy.
On day one of the Biden administration, inflation sat at 1.4%. From Biden’s decision to cancel American oil and gas production, to Congress’s astronomical spending packages, endless spending on America’s proxy war in Eastern Europe, and our nation’s supply chain issues, American families experienced inflation at an all-time high of 9.1% this summer. Although September’s CPI report recorded inflation at 8.2% year over year, it remains almost seven times the rate it was on the first day of Joe Biden’s presidency. Biden chose to eliminate the pro-economic growth policies implemented by the Trump administration and pushed radical, heavily regulated economic policies that would only benefit those aligned with the Radical Left’s agenda. Part of this agenda includes dramatically transforming the American peoples’ habits by canceling oil and gas production and pushing a Green New Deal agenda.
On January 21, 2021, the national gas price average was $2.33 a gallon. President Biden swiftly declared war on fossil fuels, revoking the Keystone XL pipeline permits and canceling domestic energy production. As a result, oil production plummeted, American oil and gas workers were laid off, and gas prices jumped to historic highs. This summer, gas prices rose to over $5 a gallon. Looking for a fast, temporary solution, Biden released 180 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, depleting our nation’s stockpile to its lowest levels in over thirty years and endangering our energy security. Biden has begged our foreign adversaries to increase oil production and even asked OPEC to delay its decision to decrease oil production until after the election, threatening to withhold military and monetary aid from Saudi Arabia if they did not adhere to the White House’s request. Not only is our energy security a national security threat to our nation, but our supply chains, weakened by COVID-19 regulations and over-regulatory burdens restricting our free-market economy, are also a cause for high prices.
COVID-19 lockdowns and vaccine mandates continue to damage America’s already fragile supply chain. Earlier this year, Canada barred unvaccinated truck drivers from the U.S. from entering into Canada. A multi-billion-dollar revenue stream for the U.S. saw tens of thousands of truck drivers quit as many northern border states who relied on cross-border commerce could no longer receive the products they needed. Farmers and ranchers were unable to get the fertilizers and equipment needed to grow crops and produce food for the American people.
The war in Ukraine also stretches critical supply chain movement, hurting our economy, but that should not be the case. Biden should put the interests of the American taxpayer ahead of escalating a European conflict that may very well result in catastrophe. Afterall, endless foreign wars are not compatible with limited government--something which politicians on both sides of the aisle have abandoned in recent years.
In November, American voters will be going to the polls focused on pocketbook issues, rejecting candidates who have aligned with Biden’s failed economic policies, and choosing those who advocate for free-market, pro-growth economic principles and reject Biden’s regulatory burdens prohibiting the market to freely function outside of government manipulation.
Adam Brandon is the President of FreedomWorks.