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WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today spoke on the Senate floor about the harsh realities families are facing due to “Bidenomics.” Thune noted that hardworking Americans are grappling with high prices, soaring interest rates, mounting debt, and shrinking savings as a result of the president’s misguided economic agenda.

 

Thune’s remarks below (as prepared for delivery):

“Mr. President, $11,434.

“That’s how much more a typical family has to spend today to maintain the same standard of living they had at the beginning of the Biden administration.

“$11,434.

“That is a lot of money.

“And needless to say, it’s money that a lot of Americans don’t have.

“Mr. President, nearly three years of high inflation has taken its toll.

“Americans are exhausted from constant price hikes.

“And they are struggling to keep pace with the huge increase in their cost of living.

“One recent news story noted, and I quote, ‘Since early 2020, prices have risen about as much as they had in the full 10 years preceding the health emergency.’

“Let me just repeat that, Mr. President.

“‘Since early 2020, prices have risen about as much as they had in the full 10 years preceding the health emergency.’

“In other words, Mr. President, we’ve had 10 years of price increases packed into the last four years.

“And the lion’s share of those increases has occurred during the Biden administration.

“Since President Biden took office, the price of groceries has risen by almost 21 percent.

“Gas prices have risen by 54.8 percent.

“Electric bills are up almost 25 percent.

“Car repairs and maintenance are up 26.5 percent.

“Rent is up 18 percent.

“And the list goes on.

“And unfortunately at this point it’s clear that today’s high prices are here to stay.  

“Mr. President, inflation didn’t come out of nowhere.

“Inflation is the result of too many dollars chasing too few goods and services.

“And that’s exactly the situation the Biden administration and Democrats helped create in 2021.

“The president’s first major piece of legislation was a massive, partisan, $1.9 trillion spending bill filled with unnecessary spending and handouts to Democrat interest groups.

“The bill flooded the economy with unnecessary government money, and the economy overheated as a result.

“And almost three years down the road, we’re still dealing with the inflation crisis the president and Democrats helped create. 

“So it should come as no surprise that the president’s ‘Bidenomics’ pitch – his attempt to sell the American people on his economic record – is falling flat, even among members of his own party.

“A substantial majority of Americans have a negative view of the economy.

“Fifty-five percent of voters say they are worse off financially under President Biden.  

“And a large percentage are cutting back on spending to make ends meet.

“President Biden claims that, quote, ‘Bidenomics is just another way of saying ‘the American Dream.’’

“But for a lot of Americans, Bidenomics has proved to be less dream and more nightmare. 

“Because the reality is that under Bidenomics, working Americans are struggling to get by.

“They’re tapping into their savings.

“They’re taking on more debt.

“They’re falling behind on car payments, or other bills.

“And increasingly, one key measure of the American dream – owning your own home – is out of reach for many Americans.

“The higher interest rates the Federal Reserve was forced to put in place to help rein in President Biden’s inflation crisis has meant more expensive mortgages – which, combined with higher home prices, has eroded homebuyers’ purchasing power.

“A recent NBC News article reported, and I quote, ‘… in late 2020, the monthly mortgage payment on a typical, newly sold home was around $1,100 in principal and interest.  It’s now about twice that.’

“‘It’s now about twice that.’

“On the car-buying front, Mr. President, Americans are facing loan rates last seen, as one article noted, during the Great Recession.

“And soaring credit card interest rates are making it difficult for Americans to afford their credit card bills, much less make progress at paying them off.

“(A situation not helped, of course, by the fact that many Americans have had to turn to their credit cards to help them get by under Bidenflation.)

“Under the Biden administration, Americans can’t catch a break.

“Mr. President, President Biden has spent a lot of time talking about giving families “a little bit of breathing room.”

“But the reality of Bidenomics is that a lot of families have seen their breathing room disappear.

“Perhaps the president should remember that before he gives another speech touting his economic record. 

“Mr. President, I yield the floor.”