Earlier this month, the United States’ credit rating was downgraded by one of the three major credit rating agencies. This troubling announcement is an indication of the serious challenges Americans continue to face as our country’s economy is in crisis, in part because of the misguided policies put forward by the Biden administration.
Recently, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Quarterly Report on Household Debt showed, for the first time in our nation’s history, combined credit card debt of Americans has surpassed $1 trillion. Furthermore, with a dim economic outlook in the coming months, many economists expect credit card account delinquencies, accounts which have become 30 days past due, to increase. This demonstrates the administration’s policies are not putting money back in families’ checkbooks, but rather the opposite.
This week marked one year since the enactment of Democrats’ so-called Inflation Reduction Act, and it is clear the American economy continues to flounder at the expense of the American people. Inflation remains an obstacle to economic growth, hitting those on a fixed income the hardest of all. According to Moody’s Analytics, American families are faced with bearing the cost of an additional $709 each month compared to two years ago. This is further proof our economy is headed in the wrong direction.
I opposed the Inflation Act because it was clear then it was not targeted to stimulate growth. Even President Biden recently said he regrets calling the package the Inflation Reduction Act because it had “less to do with reducing inflation.” The truth is the Inflation Act contained a litany of Green New Deal priorities and inflationary spending, including a $7,500 tax break for buying luxury EVs and an additional $4,000 for selling a used EV.
The administration continues to tout “Bidenomics” while families everywhere feel the pinch. Real wages are down compared to the beginning of President Biden’s term, and the cost of President Biden’s big government priorities continues to weigh down industry growth. According to American Action Forum estimates, in 2023 alone the Biden administration has published rules that increased the burden of paperwork for job creators and state and local governments by 14.9 million hours and increased costs by $85 billion. The impact of piling on red tape, increased costs for household essentials, and the failure to address our ongoing workforce shortage shows Bidenomics is failing.
To address the real challenges facing our economy and provide relief to struggling Americans, we must rein in wasteful spending; reduce tax burdens on hardworking Americans; lower costs of necessities like food, energy, and fuel; and get our country back to work. By staying true to these simple and proven economic principles we can raise wages while growing our economy.
Weakened credit ratings, high fuel and food prices, and partisan policy are a recipe for financial hardship for American families. Unlike this administration, House Republicans are committed to delivering an economy that’s strong. We can get our fiscal house in order, but it requires we return to commonsense policy that targets growth by making way for the American people to thrive.