Despite a strong economy with unemployment falling and GDP rapidly growing, and despite steady progress on his ambitious agenda, President Biden’s popularity has fallen. Inflation is at a multi-decade high, and worries about the cost of food, gas and overall inflation are likely at the center of that dissatisfaction. Americans are concerned about the rising prices of the everyday things they need.
Biden is in a tough spot with regards to inflation. It’s not a realistic option to simply ignore it or tell voters not to worry about it. Blaming it on corporate greed, as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) does, is self-evidently ridiculous (Did corporate greed disappear during all the years that inflation was low?) and doesn’t do anything to address the issue.
And while there are policies that can fight inflation, those often come with serious drawbacks. Fiscal and monetary policy responses are something Biden can’t do alone — those powers lie with Congress and with an independent Federal Reserve. And even if Biden could successfully pressure Congress and the Fed into anti-inflation policy, those policies often come with the side effect of slowing economic growth, something that no president wants to do. Luckily, there is a policy change that can be made without Congress and without harming growth — reducing tariffs.
