President Biden has delivered the worst inflation in 40 years. We see it one way or another every day. One effect of the current inflation is decline in real wages. It should come as no surprise to anyone that Biden has no idea what it means or that he is willing to say anything to try to mitigate the political damage that it is inflicting on Democrats who have enacted his policies.
Yesterday Biden gave shambling remarks at the Third Meeting of the White House Competition Council (White House transcript here). I wonder if they have a five-year plan, Soviet style.
His remarks require some translation. Biden seems to think that price controls will bring down inflation. “The bottom line for people on Medicare: They’re going to have less inflation; they’re not going to be paying as much money out,” he explained.
He will say anything to keep up the pretense that he has a handle on it. He bragged that he has brought energy prices down. “In some few states,” he said, gas is “below three bucks” a gallon.
Only last Friday the White House corrected a Biden transcript on this point. In fact, zero states have an average price under $2.99 per gallon. Even CNN said so.
The current average price is $3.72 for regular, yet Biden continued: “It’s, you know, in the low threes in most places, although there are some fires and some other problems that had to do with refining capacity in — in the far west, in the middle west. But we’re going to deal with that as well.”
He wasn’t done. He is still peddling the line that energy producers and gas stations are taking advantage of us:
We haven’t seen the lower prices reflected at the pump though. Meanwhile, oil and gas companies are still making record profits — billions of dollars in profit. But guess what? The price of oil comes down. Guess how long — don’t you think the price at the pump should come down? The price of gallon of gasoline. But it takes a long time for that to happen in relative terms. And they’re making a lot of profit, and the public is paying as part of the inflation.
And — but, look, my message is simple. To the companies running gas stations and setting those prices at the pump: Bring down the prices you’re charging at the pump to reflect the cost you pay for the product. Do it now. Do it now. Not a month from now — do it now. And it’s going to save people a lot of money.
He is having a hard time keeping his story straight.
Kulaks beware.
Quotable quote (per the transcript): “I’m directing members of the council to sharpen their focus — sharpen their focus in lowering the costs for families. Because what’s inflation? Inflation is, at the end of the month, do you have less money from your paycheck or more money in your flaysheck [paycheck]?”
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