From climbing gas prices to record-high inflation, the Biden administration has done everything within their power not to fix the issues, but to place the blame on anyone else other the President Joe Biden. Once accusing former President Donald Trump for inflation, that narrative quickly changed when Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine. Now, it appears inflation and gas prices are a direct result of the ongoing war. At least, that is what President Biden suggested. As for Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, it took just a few words to completely dismantle the Democrat’s narrative. 

Speaking in front of the Senate Banking Committee, Republican Senator Bill Hagerty asked Powell, “I realize there are a number of factors that play a role in the historic inflation that we’re experiencing: supply chain disruptions, regulations that constrain supply, we’ve got rising inflation expectations and excessive fiscal spending, But the problem hasn’t sprung out of nowhere. In January of 2021, inflation was at 1.4%. By December of 2021, it had risen to 7% — a fivefold increase. Now, since the war in Ukraine began in late February, the rate of inflation has risen incrementally another 1.6% to a current level of 8.6%. So again, from 7% to 8.6%. Given how inflation has escalated over the past 18 months, would you say that the war in Ukraine is the primary driver of inflation in America?”

Using just one sentence, Powell declared, “No, inflation was high before, certainly before the war in Ukraine broke out.”

It wasn’t just Powell either as Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers added that a recession is coming. “Look, nothing is certain, and all economic forecasts have uncertainty. My best guess is that a recession is ahead. I base that on the fact that we haven’t had a situation like the present with inflation above 4% and unemployment beyond 4% without a recession following within a year or two,” he explained. “And so I think the likelihood is that in order to do what’s necessary to stop inflation the Fed is going to raise interest rates enough that the economy will slip into a recession.”

The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Drew Berquist.