Elites are sounding the alarm over threats of inflation in order to block Biden’s social spending plan. We shouldn’t fall for it.
By Max B. Sawicky, In These Times
After years of hypocrisy and bungled forecasts of doom, the budget deficit no longer provokes panic. The elites need a new bogeyman, otherwise Congress might actually spend us into happiness. Now, the new monster in the closet is Inflation. The great prognosticators Sen. Joe Manchin (D‑W.V.) and CNN’s Wolf Blitzer have weighed in, and we are officially advised to be afwaid, vewy afwaid.
Since 2010, median housing rents have gone up by 36 percent. The cost of family health insurance has risen 47 percent. From the academic year 2009 – 2010 to 2018 – 2019, average costs of college went up 39 percent. And the median hourly wage rose by just 11 percent, so rent, healthcare and college — among other things — are all less affordable now than they were ten years ago.

To varying degrees, each of these problems is addressed in the Democrats’ budget reconciliation bill, dubbed the Build Back Better (BBB) plan. That legislation includes added support for housing, increased premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, and expanded Pell Grants for college students. There is compensation for the inadequate growth of wages, including tax credits for families with children, subsidized childcare, pre‑K for three- and four-year olds, and an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit for workers without children. Of course, each of these items is scaled down from what was originally proposed by Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. More should be done.
Recent Posts
Bernie Sanders Vs. Howard Schultz: Longtime Starbucks CEO Grilled On Company’s Union-Busting Tactics
March 30, 2023
Take Action Now Bernie Sanders grilled the former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz about the company’s illegal anti-union practices by Amy…
Tragedy In Ciudad Juárez Highlights Dangers Faced By Migrants
March 30, 2023
Take Action Now The tragic event shines a light on the multitude of dangers facing the hundreds of thousands of migrants who set off on perilous…
How Abortion Bans Are Impacting Pregnant Patients Across The Country
March 30, 2023
Take Action Now Leading legal scholar Mary Ziegler and Tennessee OB-GYN Dr. Nikki Zite talk to ProPublica about ominous trends and threats to…
The Biden Budget Does Some Good But Could Do More If It Cut The Pentagon
March 30, 2023
Take Action Now It’s clear that keeping the status quo on Pentagon spending means needlessly keeping millions mired in poverty By Lindsay…