American Families Are Struggling – It’s Time for Honesty in Washington

As crisis after crisis hits Biden and the White House, it's time he owned up and took some responsibility for his policy failures.

When President Biden took office, he inherited a fairly strong economy. Domestic production was plentiful, we were energy independent for the first time in recent history and the average cost of a gallon of gas came to $2.39. Fast forward to today, and
we are faced with record-breaking inflation, shortages of vital supplies and an average cost of $4.59 for a gallon of gas. Many Americans are struggling to make ends meet and as summer nears and an average of $5 per gallon of gas looks like a real possibility, many are wondering when the president will stop shifting blame and start taking responsibility for his policy failures.

Gas prices have been on the rise since the beginning of the Biden administration, largely due to the president's decision to massively reduce and restrict our domestic production and increase our reliance on foreign oil. However, when war broke out between Russia and Ukraine a few months ago, the White House seized on the opportunity to shift blame and coined the term “Putin's price hike” to describe the sky-high prices facing Americans. Turmoil in Europe has certainly made an impact on the global oil markets, however, with the levels of energy independence seen under the previous administration, there would have undoubtedly been a safeguard for consumers in the U.S. A year ago, gas prices were, on average, just below $3.10 per gallon, which proves that the impacts of Biden's energy agenda were impacting domestic oil prices long before Putin's troops attacked Ukraine.

In recent weeks a concerning new shortage has arrived for American consumers, this time directly impacting families across the country. At the direction of the FDA, Abbott, a major producer of baby formula, was forced to shut down production, causing a nationwide shortage of critical nutritional items needed by parents. Eventually, after days of stalling, the White House announced it would take action to increase imports on baby formula in order to fill shelves, however, it failed to give a detailed response as to why production had been shut down, to begin with.

The White House failed to explain why the FDA had caused major disruptions to the baby formula industry, an industry in which four companies make up 90% of overall production. Last week, when pictures circulated showing stockpiles of baby formula being kept at the southern border, the White House downplayed the validity of the claims and images. However, on Monday, speaking to Fox Business, GOP Congresswoman Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) validated the claims denied by the White House: “Yesterday I was on the border myself and the facts on the ground are exactly how we have been stating them.” She continued, “Lo and behold, not only was there stocked warehouses, but there were multiple stocked warehouses that have been not only filled with baby formula, diapers, wipes and clothing, but they have been doing this for months and there's more en route.”

As crisis after crisis peppers the White House, criticism and pressure have been mounting for the administration to start being honest with the American people and face their created problems. Jeff Bezos has joined the list of those criticizing the way the White House has handled the challenges facing Americans, by taking aim at their poor economic performance that has left the country on the verge of recession, saying “Inflation is a regressive tax that most hurts the least affluent. Misdirection doesn't help the country.”

As pressure continues to mount, President Biden is not the only recipient of criticism. The 2022 midterm elections are closing in on Congress and many Democrats are feeling uncomfortable about their poll numbers and the ability of the Democrat Party to retain control of Congress come November. Recent data suggests that the economy, border security and national debt are all highly important issues to voters heading to the polls. It will remain to be seen if this administration's policy failures and crisis handling will cause a shakeup of Congress during the midterms, but it looks like a stronger possibility than ever before.

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