U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell
‘People are taking out loans, cutting back spending, and relying on charity just to cope with ever-increasing prices. But that hasn’t stopped Washington Democrats from proposing new ways to wreck our economy. As we speak, they’re batting around a new suite of tax hikes aimed squarely at the middle class. If Democrat-driven inflation hasn’t pushed struggling families off the edge just yet, a Democrat-driven recession certainly will.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 21, 2022) – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding the economy:
“Washington Democrats’ one-party government has performed an amazing feat:
“In eighteen months, they’ve taken an economy that was ready to soar and completely derailed it with $2 trillion in unnecessary borrowing, printing, and spending.
“Now, 9.1% inflation is pinching hardworking Americans every time they visit the gas pump or the grocery store.
“The Biden Administration has tried their hardest to find a silver lining amid the economic storm clouds they helped create.
“They’ve touted the ‘strength of consumer spending’ to conclude our economy is strong. Of course, consumer spending has only gone up because the price of nearly everything has increased.
“A recent economic analysis shows the American people do spend more on gas, groceries, furniture, and clothes than we used to. But ‘adjusted for inflation, they are actually consuming less.’
“Parents of school-age kids are some of the hardest hit. Four in ten say they won’t go back-to-school shopping before this upcoming school year. One young mother in Nevada says she’ll ‘pick out one or two shirts,’ for her daughter, ‘and that’s it.’ Inflation has made everything else too expensive.
“In Arizona, inflation forces the average household to spend over $9,600 more a year compared to when President Biden took office. Many families simply don’t have that much wiggle room in their budget and are resorting to desperate measures to stay afloat.
“One Phoenix-area food bank has seen a 78% increase in visitors compared with last year. 78% more families who simply can’t afford to live in this Democrat-run economy.
“A woman in line at the food bank said she’d never needed to visit one before. But, ‘the prices are way too high’ right now to support four children on her husband’s salary.
“Colorado families are facing the highest inflation costs in the nation: nearly $10,900 in extra spending per year compared to the beginning of the Biden Administration.
“Not surprisingly, Coloradans are falling behind on paying for daily necessities. One pawn shop owner in the state has noticed a marked increase in loan seekers at his business. For most of them, they just need ‘30 bucks, 40 bucks,’ to ‘pay small bills, get gas, put groceries on the table.’
“This is all happening in my home state of Kentucky, too. People are taking out loans, cutting back spending, and relying on charity just to cope with ever-increasing prices. But that hasn’t stopped Washington Democrats from proposing new ways to wreck our economy.
“As we speak, they’re batting around a new suite of tax hikes aimed squarely at the middle class. If Democrat-driven inflation hasn’t pushed struggling families off the edge just yet, a Democrat-driven recession certainly will.
“What’s on the menu? New taxes on small businesses already struggling with inflation. New fees and regulations on American energy producers that will send prices even higher at the pump. New socialist price control schemes to stifle healthcare innovation.
“Apparently, record inflation isn’t enough to make Democrats realize their reckless economic agenda is a failure. Maybe tax-hike-induced stagflation will set them straight.”
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