President Biden’s 40-year-high inflation has caused divided Democrats to unite against him.
The far-left and blue dog Democrats are pointing figures at Biden for massive inflation. Biden has attempted to redirect the blame to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but his misdirection play has not worked.
“Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has driven up gas prices and food prices all over the world,” Biden claimed in Iowa on Tuesday. “So everything is going up. We saw it in today’s inflation data.”
Biden’s claim that inflation is only a result of Putin’s actions is incorrect. Inflation was climbing well before “Putin’s price hike.”
Biden’s attempts to make Putin a scapegoat for inflation have not distracted Democrats from targeting Biden for mismanaging the economy, albeit from different perspectives.
Nina Turner, a “Bernie Bro” and former radical politician from Ohio, scolded Biden on Wednesday for the massive price hikes that are impacting food, fuel, and rent. “Corporate politicians are not the answer,” she said about president Biden.
Turner’s opinion, much like Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-VT), comes from the perspective of the far left, which many times opposes the Washington, DC, establishment. For example, Sanders was in a position to defeat Biden in the 2020 Democrat primary until the establishment coalesced around Biden.
Inflation for Americans looks like:
Fuel oil 70%
Gas 48%
Used cars 35%
Hotels 29%
Airfare 24%
Utility gas 22%
Bacon 18%
Oranges 18%
Furniture 16%
Beef 16%
Chicken 13%
Milk 13%
Eggs 11%
Coffee 11%
Food at home 10%
Rent (OER) 4.5%Corporate politicians are not the answer.
— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) April 13, 2022
In contrast to Turner’s critique, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), who hails from a state that voted for Donald Trump over Biden by nearly 40 points, slammed Biden for inflation from a different, more conventional angle.
“The Federal Reserve and the Administration failed to act fast enough, and today’s data is a snapshot in time of the consequences being felt across the country,” he said Tuesday. “Here is the truth, we cannot spend our way to a balanced, healthy economy and continue adding to our $30 trillion national debt.”
Manchin’s statement came from a very different perspective than Turner’s. Unlike the radical left, Manchin believes in American energy independence, an idea that Biden and the radical left oppose. Manchin also believes Biden’s expensive and far-left “Build Back Better” policy cannot restore the economy.
Turner’s and Manchin’s attacks pin the Democrat Party in an awkward position. Neither the far-left nor blue dog Democrats can solve Biden’s inflation, and Biden is steering the Democrat Party over the cliff with the midterm elections in November.
Inflation has left some vulnerable Democrats to fend for themselves. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who is facing a difficult battle to retain his seat, said inflation is the most important issue to voters. Indeed, polling supports Warnock’s assessment.
“Right now I’m very focused on the real pinch that people are feeling around rising costs,” he told the Hill. “[It’s] why I introduced my insulin bill, which will cap the cost of insulin. It’s the reason why I’ve introduced the federal tax holiday.”
Warnock is just one Democrat who is under dire stress from Biden’s presidency. Jim Kessler, a former aide to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) who now is the executive vice president for policy at Third Way, a blue dog Democrat think tank, told the Hill Democrats should expect at least five difficult Senate races in the fall.
“The Senate map is as benign as it’s going to be for Democrats but there’s five tough races for Democrats,” Kessler admitted.
“The natural order of midterms is you lose about 10 points and if you lose 10 points across the board, that’s four [lost Democratic] Senate seats,” he said. “The wind is in their face.”
Republicans must only pick up one seat in the Senate to reclaim control. In the House, the Republicans have to pick up about three seats. With Biden’s inflation dividing Biden’s party, Democrats are worried they will take a beating in November.
“Democrats warn ‘inflation could cost us Congress,’” a Guardian headline read Wednesday.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø
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