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Readers of this newsletter will know that I am a fan of Joe Biden’s White House and believe that most of its policies, particularly in the economic realm, have been correct. This administration has fought through partisan politics, not to mention battles within its own party (which is still divided about whether to move away from neoliberalism as an economic philosophy), to pass a major climate bill, the Chips act, infrastructure spending, support union labour, prop up vulnerable families and workers in the midst of a pandemic (which has kept consumer spending strong), and has done it all while the Federal Reserve is orchestrating a 40-year turn in monetary policy — and there’s a war in Ukraine that could turn nuclear.
So why the heck are Democrats having such a hard time selling their record economically?
One word: inflation. The job market is still hot, even with the Fed raising rates. But inflation in housing, food and fuel is outpacing wage growth, and that’s what people feel on a daily basis. Never mind that US inflation has very little to do with anything the Biden administration itself has done, but is…
