If Trump, or any Republican, was in the White House, it would be stated that this is bad news for Trump or the Republican. Apparently, Biden doesn’t really exist. More importantly, this is apparently not that bad for you the American citizens (you can read the piece not paywalled here)
Inflation is unrelenting, bad news for the Fed and White House
Prices continued to climb at a brutally rapid pace in September, with a key inflation index increasing at the fastest rate in 40 years, bad news for the Federal Reserve as it struggles to wrestle the cost of living back under control.
Overall inflation climbed 8.2% over the year through September, according to the latest consumer price index report Thursday, a slight moderation from August but more than what economists had expected.
Even more worrisome, underlying inflation trends are headed in the wrong direction. After stripping out fuel and food — which are volatile and removed to get a better sense of the trajectory — prices climbed 6.6% over the year through September. That was the quickest rate since 1982.
Inflation has been rapid for a year and a half now, and it is proving stubborn even as the Fed mounts its most aggressive campaign in generations to slow the economy and bring price increases under control. Fast inflation has also triggered the highest Social Security cost-of-living adjustment in decades — an 8.7% increase in benefits to retired and disabled Americans, a move that was announced Thursday.
Again, this is what it looks like
Annual inflation via BLS just out:
42.9% airline fares
33.1% utility gas
30.5% eggs
18.2% gasoline
17.2% chicken
15.7% coffee
15.2% milk
14.7% bread
10.1% furniture
9.2% vegetables
8.2% all items
8.2% fruit
8.1% ham
7.6% women apparel
7.2% used cars
6.7% rent
3.7% men apparel— Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) October 13, 2022
Part of the problem is that the generic version of many foods have disappeared. So, the eggs are double at Lidl. Gas? It’s $3.50 here in Raleigh, was just over $2 when Trump left office. Used cars? Not sure where that number came from. Ones you could get for $17k to $18k even through mid-202o are now running around $25K.
Inflation is also a stumbling block for President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats before the midterm elections. The report Thursday was the final consumer price index release before the Nov. 8 elections, and Republicans wasted little time in excoriating Biden for his handling of the economy. While Americans are keeping up their consumption, many of the nation’s most vulnerable are struggling with rising food, fuel and housing costs — and most people are seeing their paychecks eroded by the cost increases.
See? It’s bad for Joe.
Biden said that the report showed “some progress” in combating the increases, noting that costs have climbed by less over the past three months than they had in the prior three months. But he also acknowledged that inflation remained painfully high.
“We have more work to do,” he said in a statement after the release.
He actually has to do work. For which he really hasn’t done much at all to help. Climbing less from a high point isn’t a big helper.
Our esteemed host wrote:
From Yellow, Yellow, Lisa, and Snow:
The two larger eggses are from Yellow and Yellow — I can’t tell them apart — and the two smaller ones from Lisa and Snow. Snow is our only white chicken.
The Biden administration isn’t worried about inflation. They have been unanimously telling the media that :
1. There is no inflation.
2. If there is inflation, it is very low.
3. If there is high inflation, it will be momentary, and
4. We had it coming. We needed this inflation to fight climate change and bring the economy under control.
And the news media will dutifully change the subject to some other shiny object: LOOK Trump has to testify to congressional committee.
The Clinton administration used to lie about inflation too, but at least they had the decency to “correct the record” after the fact to preserve the sense that the BLS wasn’t just an extension of the Democratic party and making stuff up. We no longer have that now. Every federal agency is just an extension of the Democratic party and they all see themselves as activists.
That’s exactly it Professor. We used to have a government of politicians plus committed public servants. We now have a government of criminals and their committed activists.
Plus, if we dare say anything about it we’re racists, theocrats and White supremacists desparatley trying not to be replaced by “the other” as dowd would accuse.
MAGA
Thus demonstrating the NYT’s priorities nicely – no concern for the public that’s getting screwed, only for their fellow morons in government.
I think this pretty well define “tone-deaf”.