Ouch: Inflation hit but one other new excessive in June, a worse-than-expected annual price of 9.1% — a degree final seen in November 1981.
In consequence, actual hourly earnings fell 3.6% over the past 12 months. Plus, employers searching for to make their ends meet have been slicing again on employees’ hours, so precise, inflation-adjusted weekly earnings fell 4.4%.
And the hit is even more durable for working People, as power and meals prices soared much more: groceries up 12%; gasoline, 60%.
Oh, and the inflation bounce from Might to June was 1.3%, the biggest one-month spike since Bidenflation began as Congress was passing the so-called American Rescue Plan.
Hey, says President Joe Biden: These numbers don’t reflect the drop in pump prices within the weeks since June. However the decline is modest, and never assured to proceed.
As for the White Home declare that June will show to mark inflation’s peak: Perhaps. But it surely stated the identical again in December, when value hikes have been “solely” 7%. Biden himself stated in January that the rise was “slowing.” (Earlier than that, the road was that it was “transitory” and can be again to 2.1% in 2022. Oops.)
Worse, Democrats’ massive concepts proper now embrace: 1) a tax lower for the wealthy, through the Home-passed invoice to extend the federal State and Native Tax deduction, and a pair of) extra tax hikes on enterprise and more federal spending, plus extra Inexperienced New Deal nonsense through a brand new model of the Construct Again Higher invoice.
Oh, and Biden’s about to beg the Saudis to pump more oil, at the same time as his workforce continues to slam US drillers within the title of combating local weather change.
Backside line: The president and Dems in Congress refuse to budge from the strategy that acquired us into this mess.
As a substitute, they’re nonetheless leaving it completely to the Federal Reserve to slay inflation with interest-rate hikes and comparable tough-love strikes. That’s needed medication, but in addition provides to the danger of recession — or, somewhat, of deepening the recession that’s doubtless already underway (we’ll know for certain when second-quarter financial development numbers come out at month’s finish).
November’s elections ought to change the tune from Congress, however Biden nonetheless appears bent on outdoing Jimmy Carter for probably the most clearly disastrous presidency in residing reminiscence.
