Inflation is declining, but the pressure on Biden remains
President Biden has not yet benefited from moderating inflation, and the data released Thursday could complicate the White House’s efforts to show progress on rising prices.
The consumer price index is expected to show headline inflation rising slightly faster in December than in November on an annual basis.
Still, “core” inflation – a key measure that excludes volatile food and energy prices – is expected to have risen 3.8 percent in the year to December, up from 4 percent in November. If that were to happen, it would be the first time the core index has fallen below 4 percent since May 2021.
But that moderation hasn’t stopped Biden’s rivals from using high prices as a cudgel to criticize his economic stewardship.
This week, former President Donald J. Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, blamed Mr. Biden for rising prices as he campaigned in Iowa before Monday’s caucuses there.
“Our middle class is being crushed by Biden’s crippling inflation,” Trump said on the website Truth Social.
Polls show that voters have a bleak view of Biden’s economic performance. Despite a strong labor market, higher costs and interest rates have left Americans feeling poorer.
The politics of inflation have also infiltrated the Republican primary race, with Trump’s main rivals, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida and Nikki Haley, the former United Nations ambassador, suggesting that Trump’s big spending policies set the tone during his presidency. for higher prices.
“When it comes to our economy and getting inflation under control, the first thing we need to do is recover the more than $100 billion in unspent Covid dollars that are still available,” Ms. Haley said during a town hall hosted by CNN. week.
Mr. DeSantis, at a Fox News town hall this week, blamed lawmakers from both parties for borrowing too much money during the pandemic, but said rising incomes in his state were helping people cope with the “Biden inflation ‘.
Senior officials in the Biden administration are hopeful that as inflation subsides, voters will feel better about the economy.
“The Biden administration is doing everything it can to reduce the costs Americans face,” Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen told reporters at an event in Virginia on Monday. “I think sentiment will improve over time.”