Washington, DC–Republicans on the US Senate Finance Committee, led by ranking member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), held a press conference to emphasize why combining big tax increases with sky-high inflation is a terrible combination for American workers and the economy. To watch the press conference in its entirety, click here.
We highlight:
Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho):
“Tax increases would worsen inflation by further suppressing supply in the economy, including reducing investment and productivity growth, as well as labor supply when labor force participation remains below pre-pandemic levels.”
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa):
“Iowans are paying $670 more per month in cost of living since President Biden took office. They are begging for a reprieve from the Democrats’ terrible economic policies. . . . More government spending and higher taxes are exactly the opposite of what Iowans need right now. Reckless government spending fueled inflation in the first place – more spending will make it worse.”
Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas):
“Pain, the silent tax you’ve heard about, affects people most directly. You’d think a Biden administration would understand the basic laws of supply and demand. The only reason prices are high is because demand is high, but when demand is high if you want to lower the price you increase the supply. . . . We could create more good jobs across America and lower the price of gas at the pump and provide real relief to American consumers if we just produced more energy here at home.”
Sen. James Lankford (R-Oklahoma):
“[H]history repeats itself. Literally, the weekend before I watched Joe Biden travel to Saudi Arabia to meet with them about increasing oil production and trying to lower prices in America, I read a story about Jimmy Carter doing the exact same thing in the 1970s. This is Biden’s economy. This economy that we have right now with 9.1 percent inflation is directly related to the policies of the Democrats and the things that have gone through in the past year that have dramatically increased prices for Americans.”
Senator Todd Young (R-Indiana):
“$5,200 is a lot of money for the average American household. I know back in Indiana, $5,200 can make or break an administration. It can make or break a presidency. So this president needs to realize that he’s headed in the wrong direction with this proposed tax increase.”
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio):
“[Inflation] is the most punitive tax of all. We just got the numbers from Ohio this morning – $8,300 a year in additional energy spending; about food; utility bills in general; on clothes. $8,300 a year, that’s based on our numbers that we have in Ohio in January so far in terms of inflation, and extrapolating that out for the rest of the year. It is impossible for people to bear it if they are on a fixed income. A lot of lower- and middle-income people in Ohio are suffering the worst.”
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