Prices have risen almost 20% since he took office

Inflation cooled slightly in AprilBut even the slower price increases revealed this week still contributed to an outcome that is perhaps the Biden campaign’s most intractable economic challenge of the 2024 campaign season.

Prices as measured by the seasonally adjusted Consumer Price Index (CPI) have now risen more than 19.4% in the more than three years since Biden took office.

The cumulative price increase has been the focus of the Republican Party for monthsand this continued on Wednesday as new data showed the count inching ever closer to a psychologically significant 20% milestone.

The Trump campaign didn’t even wait for the threshold to be crossed on Wednesday, with a statement from the campaign’s press secretary stating flatly that “global prices have risen 20%.”

Trump himself, as he often does, exaggerated the numbers even further and largely beyond recognition. On a video response to the inflation report, he said, without offering any evidence, that inflation “takes away 30% to 50% of every dollar you have.”

President Biden himself reacted to the latest report with a statement considers costs its main economic priority, while recognizing that “although we have made progress, we have much more to do”.

See more information: Inflation slowed down in April – see how this affects your portfolio

For comparison, prices rose just under 7.8% during the four years of Donald Trump’s presidency.

Economists often observe that the differences between inflation in the two periods are due to a series of factors that go far beyond the occupant of the Oval Office.

Under Trump, for example, COVID disruptions toward the end of his presidency significantly reduced gas prices. Under Biden, supply chain issues have driven up prices in other areas.

But either way, expect to hear a lot more about the cumulative inflation numbers from Trump and his allies over the next six months.

These higher prices and the “economic narrative here are very well cemented,” added Pangea Policy founder Terry Haines. to Yahoo Finance on Wednesday.

“This really hurts the president in many states that he needs to carry, and it is a dynamic that clouds his campaign,” he added.

An even larger measure of total inflation

Many in Trump’s orbit rate the increase during Biden’s term even higher.

Make America Great Again Inc. is a super PAC that supports former President Trump. It reacted to Wednesday’s news by saying global prices have risen 19.9% ​​since Biden took office.

The discrepancy between the 19.4% and 19.9% ​​numbers is based on how the Republican-aligned group uses data that is not seasonally adjusted, which shows a slightly larger difference.

The story continues

The group also listed a range of products in Wednesday’s launch – from gasoline to eggs to airline tickets – that have risen even higher over the past 40 months.

That 19.9% ​​number was perhaps repeated too often by Republicans throughout Wednesday.

“#Bidenflation is a tax on ALL Americans,” posted Elise Stefanik, chairwoman of the House Republican Conference.

“This is Bidenomics!” added account of the Republican National Committee.

A key dynamic for the next campaign

Biden’s challenge on the inflation issue has been evident for months, with the president and his allies often struggling for a cohesive message on the issue.

Another example emerged this week in an exclusive interview with Yahoo Finance. During that conversation, Biden was pressured by America’s poor economic mood.

In his response, he discussed prices and repeated the false claim that inflation “was at 9% when I arrived and now it has dropped by around 3%”. Biden made a similar claim previously on CNN.

In fact, the annual inflation rate when he took office was 1.4%. Prices rose after Biden’s inauguration and reached 9.1% – but that peak occurred in June 2022, after Biden had been in office for more than a year.

The latest data, released Wednesday following Biden’s recent comments, pegs the current annual inflation rate at 3.4%, a slight drop from the 3.5% rate in March.

Biden also told Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi during Tuesday’s conversation that part of the unease in the country is because “I think people are insecure, and that’s why we need to be steadfast, stay the course and continue to produce these incredible jobs.” .”

He said he was confident his government could handle it, but that “it’s going to take a little more time.”

It remains to be seen whether voters will give Biden that time, but the comment marked a continuation of Biden’s tendency to focus on jobs, even as poll after poll shows inflation as the top economic concern among voters.

It’s a trend that even appeared in polls from Democratic allies. A Blueprint 2024 last month’s survey – a Democratic-aligned group – found that 91% of respondents described inflation as a “serious problem.”

Among those surveyed, 37% also described inflation as one of the “most important issues”. Only 25% said the same about jobs and the economy.

Ben Werschkul is the Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.

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