High Consumer Prices among Top Concerns as Voters Lose Confidence in Biden, Polls Show

As new polls indicate that American voters remain worried about the persistently high cost of goods and have largely lost confidence in President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy, a leading economist is pointing out that the economies in red states that feature free market policies are outpacing the economies of blue states.

An NBC News poll published Sunday revealed that Biden lagged behind former President Donald Trump by over 20 points on the question of “which candidate would better handle the economy.” Overall, the poll found that Biden’s approval rating has reached the lowest point of his presidency at 37%.

The survey comes as voters say that the economy is among their top concerns going into the November elections. A recent Harvard CAPS-Harris poll found that inflation was the primary worry for 32% of respondents, a close second behind the border crisis at 35%.

While inflation has largely leveled off since reaching a high of 9.1% in June 2022, consumers are still worried about the persistent rising costs of virtually all goods since the 2020 pandemic that have not come back down. As reported by CNN, “More than 90% of the items tracked in the Consumer Price Index are more expensive than they were in February 2020, with most price increases landing north of 20% and some (fuel and margarine) approaching 55%.” Overall, food prices have risen almost 25%.

Stephen Moore, distinguished fellow in Economics at The Heritage Foundation, joined “Washington Watch” last week to discuss the current economic outlook in America.

“What’s happening in America today is you’ve got red states with low taxes, less regulation, [and] right-to-work that are doing extraordinarily well,” he explained. “You know, they’re actually booming [in] Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Utah, Idaho. So many of these states, [like] South Carolina, the southern states are doing amazing. … [B]y the way, the South now is the number one leading region in the economy. It used to be the northeast for 100 years. But the northeast is losing its people, its businesses, its capital. And they’re going to states like Florida and Texas and Arizona … because the taxes are lower [and] there’s a more pro-business atmosphere. They follow free market policies. That’s what American businesses want. That’s what workers want.”

Moore, who also serves as a senior economist at FreedomWorks, went on to argue that the Biden administration’s federal spending policies have negatively affected the economy.

“[T]he question becomes, ‘Why don’t we do, on the national level, what works in the states? Why don’t we cut our taxes, reduce our regulations? Why don’t we get our budget under control?’ We’re running a $1.5 trillion debt. … It’s because we’ve got a president who is spending and printing and borrowing a trillion and a half dollars a year — it’s as obvious [as] the sun ris[ing] in the East and set[ting] in the West when you have that kind of out of control spending. You know what? You’re going to get inflation.”

At an event last week, Biden accused grocery stores of “ripping people off” through “price gouging, junk fees, greedflation [and] shrinkflation.”

“That’s the way all these Democrats are,” Moore responded. “They keep saying, ‘Oh, the profits are too high.’ Why don’t you go out there and show you can make a profit? It ain’t so easy to do it. These are businesses that are providing jobs, providing growth for our economy, putting food on our table. I’m sick of him criticizing American businesses.”

AUTHOR

Dan Hart

Dan Hart is senior editor at The Washington Stand.

EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

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