The new consumer prices report showing a 3.8% price rise in April confirms what Americans have been complaining about for months: Inflation is continuing to squeeze family budgets.
It’s indisputable that oil and fertilizer supply disruptions in the Middle East are driving up prices here at home.
But that’s only part of the inflation story. Consumer prices overall are up nearly 30% since COVID-19 derailed the U.S. economy six years ago. That’s the worst stretch of inflation since the bad old 1970s under Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter, when inflation hit double-digit levels.
It’s important to remember why this spurt of rising prices has hit consumers right in the nose — er, wallet — if we are going to solve the affordability crisis.
If we look at the year-by-year bump up in prices, we see that inflation was tame in Donald Trump’s first term (2017-21), with an annualized rate of 2.5%. It would have been closer to 2% had it not been for COVID-19 and the lockdowns. Inflation was running below 2% in the months before Joe Biden took over the White House.
Then inflation rocketed to 9% in 2022.
The average annual inflation rate was 5% over the Biden presidency, with an overall 21% rise in prices. That was the worst inflation stretch since Carter.
Through the first 16 or so months of Trump 2.0, the inflation rate is running at just above 3%.
About 80% of the rise in prices over the past six years has been under Biden’s presidency. So, if you’re angry about the high price of nearly everything, Bidenomics is the primary villain.
Why did prices rise so rapidly under Biden? The answer is so obvious that only a Ph.D. Ivy League economist couldn’t get the answer right. It was runaway government spending. During COVID-19 and its aftermath, Uncle Sam spent more than $4 trillion.
Remember the Build Back Better Act, CHIPS and Science Act, Inflation Reduction Act, and other “stimulus” bills? Every penny of that spending blitz was borrowed and essentially printed. Trump deserves some of the blame here for spending $1 trillion in the final months of his first term.
What’s worse is that none of that multitrillion-dollar emergency spending splurge has been drained out of the permanent budget.
What causes inflation? Too many dollars are being spent on too few goods. Ironically, more than a dozen high-ranking economists, including three Nobel Prize winners, wrote in The New York Times that the Biden spending blitz “wouldn’t cause inflation.” Whoops!
What’s the point of this inflation/affordability history lesson? Private sector growth in output lowers inflation. More apples produced means apples are cheaper. Government growth usually accelerates inflation.
Here’s the impending political and economic danger for Republicans. The solution isn’t just to get the oil flowing through the Persian Gulf. We also have to reduce government spending right now. Republicans have a $200 billion supplemental spending bill for the military with not a penny of offsetting spending cuts.
If Republicans don’t start watching their Ps and Qs, as the old saying goes, we could see another Biden-type inflation surge with voters mad as hell. They can’t unilaterally get the oil flowing from the Middle East, but they can stop spending $2 trillion more than they take in. Trump recently announced a national initiative for physical fitness.
How about one for fiscal fitness?
Stephen Moore is a former Trump senior economic adviser and the cofounder of Unleash Prosperity, which advocates for education freedom for all children.
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“If Republicans don’t start watching their [fiscal] Ps and Qs….”
Surely you jest Stephen. Have you checked the National Debt lately ?
Congress hasn’t balanced the budget since Newt was Speaker. The Mike Johnson led House hasn’t come anywhere close so don’t expect much of a turn in inflation in the immediate future.
Good luck getting congress to cut back their spending. They seem to think that spending is the way to get votes. I wonder how amazed they would be if they spent less and got more votes.
President Trump gets the blame for everything. Folks don’t remember the previous administrations and how they didn’t care for our country. Money was spent on “who knows what”. Yet to be determined.
Joebama certainly deserves the blame for his “transitory” bidenflation, along with many other failures that hurt our country. As for the higher gas prices for which we’re paying now (which were under $3/gallon in many states before Epic Fury), it’s President Trump who has to accept the blame. Meat was and is STILL unaffordable. Grocery prices are back on the rise. And unfortunately, Iran is playing DJT for a fool with their stall tactics. Midterms are less than six months away. Be afraid of a blue wave. Be very afraid.
I think having a New Fed Chair will help. Try stepping into the Appropriations Committee room and listen to all the democrat spending bills.Not easy for Republicans to cut $2T when up against that, but I am sure they are trying. There is a lot being done on getting the government Fraud under control.Gas prices will soon be more stable. It’s all happening!
Our Country is Bankrupt , we collapsed in 2008 our Government has been covering it up ever since with deficit spending and welfare . From a 8.9 Trillion dollar Deficit in 2008 to over 40 Trillion in 2026 .
Trump made comment yesterday: I DO NOT PAY ANY ATTENTION TO FINANCIALS SITUATIONS OF Americans & then only care about one thing & that is that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. And then a couple of minutes later was ranting about doubling size of ballroom & cleaning out the pool. Trump has no idea what the average American families are going through with the rising costs & as POTUS he should stand for all Americans!
I blame many things on what is going on in our country.But I also believe that there is a lot of gouging happening today.
Blame BIDEN and big GUBMINT?! They won’t listen to you.
Besides, they have been bought and paid for already!!!
Perfect! Great opinions. I agree totally.
Some Presidents in the past have said THE BUCK STOPS HERE. Trump is POTUS today & is responsible for everything on his watch & blaming others for problems does not help solve problems. Look in the mirror in front of you & not in the rear view mirror!
Hooray someone is suggesting countability! Forget tax cuts it’s time to
cut excess spending.
Biden’s sky high inflation scared the bejezzers out of American shoppers. I to this day can’t get their frightened looking faces out of my mind. The Fear was palpable.