[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 15, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              The Economy

  Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, I come to the floor today to talk 
about the economy.
  You know, right now, inflation is at a record high. At the same time, 
what we are seeing is that Joe Biden's approval rating by the people 
all across this country is at a record low. And there is a connection.
  This morning, the majority leader came to the floor of the Senate and 
said that Democrats were going to talk about inflation at their policy 
lunch today--today, February 15, 2022--13 months after Joe Biden took 
office.
  Democrats have been in power for almost 13 months. They control the 
White House. They control the Senate. They control the House of 
Representatives. Ten months into this inflation crisis, what they are 
doing is putting forward gimmicks, not solutions.
  They want to get past the upcoming election. They don't want to get 
to long-term solutions for our Nation.
  On Thursday, the world found out that prices in the United States had 
risen at their fastest pace in 40 years, and of course that was the 
same day that Joe Biden's approval rating dropped to 40 percent.
  The American people are getting squeezed financially. They are 
feeling the pain, and they are furious with President Biden. Since Joe 
Biden became President, wages have gone up slower than prices. Prices 
have gone up faster than wages. People can't keep up. It is hard to 
even stay even. As a result, the American family today can afford a lot 
less than it could the day that Joe Biden took office. Over the last 
year, inflation outpaced wages by over $1,400. That is an over-$100-a-
month differential.
  So who gets hurt the worst when your wages fall behind the increasing 
costs of Joe Biden's economy?
  Well, it is families who are struggling; it is young couples; it is 
people living on fixed incomes; it is people trying to go to work every 
day to put bread on the table. In other words, the people who are hurt 
the most are the people who can afford it the least. They are feeling 
the pain and paying the price every time they go to the grocery store 
and every time they go to the gas pump.
  Big price increases have occurred in energy. CNBC reports that one in 
five American families couldn't afford to pay the energy bill over the 
past year. The same number, roughly, kept their homes at an 
uncomfortable and unhealthy temperature because they can't afford the 
cost of energy to heat them. Many have had to choose whether they are 
going to heat or to eat. Gas prices have gone up by over $1 a gallon 
since Joe Biden became President.
  American energy production is still not to the level that it was 
before the pandemic. We are still producing 1.2 million fewer barrels 
of oil each day than we were before the pandemic. We are not producing 
it here, but--oh, by the way--Vladimir Putin is selling 5 million 
barrels a day of crude oil in the international markets. This is a 
direct result of the anti-American energy policies of Joe Biden and his 
entire administration and the Democratic Party in this country. People 
understand simple supply and demand. When the supply goes down and the 
demand stays the same or goes up, prices go up as well.
  It is also what happened with America's workforce. The Democrats 
created the worst labor shortage in American history. We have broken 
records for unfilled jobs in 5 of the last 12 months.
  So when did it start?
  Well, it started in March of this past year, when Democrats passed 
their $2 trillion spending bill, which was not paid for and added to 
the debt, and the bill gave a bonus payment for people to stay home 
from work. People were getting paid more not to go to work than they 
were able to make had they gone to work.
  What happened when the bonuses ran out?
  Joe Biden imposed a national vaccine mandate, saying that if you 
don't get the vaccine, you lose your job. The vaccine mandate took a 
sledgehammer to the American workforce. According to one survey, half 
of America's small businesses couldn't find enough workers in just this 
past December. If you drive around Wyoming, you will see ``Help 
Wanted'' signs all around my home State. What happens when you have 
fewer workers? It means empty shelves and higher prices. When supply 
goes down, prices go up.
  Now the opposite is also true. That is what we have seen with the 
value of the dollar. Last March, Democrats flooded the country with 
government cash. Now the dollar, in many people's wallets and 
pocketbooks, doesn't go as far as it did before.
  Democrats passed the largest single spending bill in American 
history. They put $2 trillion on the Nation's credit card. Republicans 
warned: Do not do this. It will cause inflation. Democrats didn't 
listen. Every single Democrat in this Senate voted for it; every single 
Democrat voted for it; every single Republican voted against it; and 
Joe Biden signed it.
  Since then, prices have gone up faster than wages. First, they said 
it was going to be temporary. Then, astonishingly, in July, Joe Biden 
said inflation was expected. He kind of bragged that he had seen it 
coming all along. Well, if he had seen it coming all along, why didn't 
he do something about it? All that this President has done is put jet 
fuel on the fire of inflation. He told us inflation would be 
transitory, and he said it month after month, after month, after month. 
He can't say it anymore. Oh, no. Inflation is here, and people are 
paying the price and feeling the pain.
  Last week's inflation report should be a blaring siren to the 
Democrats in Washington, and I was so happy to hear the majority 
leader, this morning, saying, finally, today, at lunch, February 15, 
2022, that the Democrats were going to start talking about inflation at 
their policy lunch today. They should all be suffering from significant 
indigestion.
  This is a crisis, and Democrats are doing nothing about it. The 
Democrats borrowed trillions of dollars this year.
  This week, Democrats in the House are talking about getting rid of 
the debt ceiling completely--of spending more. They are talking about a 
blank check, unlimited borrowing, and trillions and trillions more in 
spending, which will only mean higher and higher inflation.
  Inflation will not go away on its own. Democrats need to stop the 
reckless spending. They need to stop the nationwide mandates. They need 
to stop shutting down American energy. The American people cannot 
afford any more records like the ones that Joe Biden is setting right 
now.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.