President Joe Biden lambasted House Republicans for their economic agenda, which he labeled “Maganomics,” seeking to link them to the policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump, in the midst of a spending fight that threatens to shut down the federal government.
(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden lambasted House Republicans for their economic agenda, which he labeled “Maganomics,” seeking to link them to the policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump, in the midst of a spending fight that threatens to shut down the federal government.
“They’re back at it again, breaking their commitment, threatening more cuts and threatening to shut down government again this month,” Biden said Thursday at Prince George’s Community College in Largo, Maryland.
“The country should know the facts. They should know the choice between Bidenomics and Maganomics,” Biden said, claiming Republicans were focused on delivering tax cuts to corporations and high-income earners while cutting $700 billion from Social Security and $1 trillion from Medicare.
Biden this summer rebranded his agenda with the tagline of “Bidenomics” and seized on data showing a resilient US economy — but that messaging failed to make headway with voters. In recent days, Biden has aimed his fire at Republican priorities in the standoff over funds for the government, which are set to run out on Sept. 30.
Hardline conservatives are pressuring Speaker Kevin McCarthy to secure deeper spending cuts, tougher border enforcement to deal with migration flows and either reductions or a halt to funding for Ukraine in exchange for a measure to keep funding the government.
Biden on Thursday accused Republicans of seeking to break agreements they made over government spending in a deal to suspend the US debt limit earlier this year and dismissed Republican claims that they are seeking to rein in federal debt.
“Now, what they do talk about is claiming all these cuts are going to reduce the deficit. When it comes to reducing the deficit, let’s compare the records a little bit. Under my predecessor, remember the self-professed ‘king of debt’? Turned out he was. He’s actually the emperor of debt,” Biden said, delivering a jab at Trump.
Biden also assailed his predecessor on job growth and manufacturing.
“There were only two presidents in American history with fewer jobs the day they left office than when they started. One was President Hoover and the other was Donald Hoover Trump,” he said.
Biden said the “prior administration promised to revive manufacturing.”
“They failed,” he added. “I’m not sure they tried, to be honest with you.”
Trump and other Republican presidential contenders have vowed to undo Biden’s economic policies if elected.
“Crooked Joe Biden has spent months boasting that he deserves political credit and public gratitude for the state of the U.S. economy,” the Trump campaign said in a statement ahead of Biden’s speech. “But the public has not been fooled. They see Bidenomics for what it is: inflation, taxation, submission, and failure.”
Biden’s pitch comes at a delicate time for his economic message. A consumer price report released Wednesday showed inflation accelerating at its fastest pace in more than a year, with more than half of the advance due to rising prices at the pump. Higher mortgage rates and still-low supply are chipping away at housing affordability, and Covid-era childcare supports are set to expire at month’s end.
Earlier: US Consumer Prices Jump, Straining Household Budgets Even More
Adding to the economic stresses is a looming midnight deadline for the United Auto Workers to reach a deal with the Big Three automakers, with a strike threatening to push multiple swing states like Michigan into recession and fan car-price inflation.
Read more: Biden Has Few Options to Avert Strike Against Big 3 Carmakers
Biden vowed Thursday to bring down prices at the pump which are helping fuel inflation.
“We have the lowest inflation rate among the major economies. We have a lot more to do though. I’m going get those gas prices down again. I promise you,” he said.
–With assistance from Erik Wasson and Jordan Fabian.
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