U.S. Treasury secretary Janet Yellen doesn’t think inflationary pressures stem from the stimulus policies enacted after the Covid-19 outbreak. Yellen was criticized by Republicans for not having been aware about inflation’s risks during her Wednesday speech to the House Ways and Means Committee. A U.S. senator from Wyoming questioned the Treasury secretary’s “pronouncements and decisions” concerning the record gas prices and rising inflation.
Yellen Claims Stimulus ‘Produced Excellent Rewards for Americans’ — Republican Senator Says American Rescue Plan ‘Overheated the Economy’
Janet Yellen (Treasury secretary) downplayed Wednesday the idea that stimulus policies such as the American Rescue Plan or other monetary expansion policies were a major factor in the rising inflation. “The success of the policy adopted is that we have an economy with the strongest labor market, arguably in the entire post-war period,” Yellen remarked during her House Ways and Means Committee statements. She added that the spending “produced excellent rewards for Americans and, at most, it contributed modestly to inflation.”
Americans are more concerned these days with the hot inflation plaguing the U.S. economy than banning “assault weapons,” according to a poll by Quinnipiac University on June 3-6. Despite the Treasury secretary’s commentary, Republicans such as Wyoming senator John Barrasso do not seem convinced with Yellen’s opinion. “Is there a risk of inflation? You responded, ‘I think there’s a small risk,’” Barrasso said to Yellen on Wednesday. Barrasso added:
It makes me wonder why Americans would trust your decisions, recommendations and pronouncements today.
John Thune (a Republican senator representing South Dakota) believes that America’s inflation problem is due to the billions spent towards the stimulus plan. “I think that there’s no question that the $2 trillion bill last year overheated the economy, and it’s why we have the mess that we have today,” Thune explained during the House Ways and Means Committee. The Republican senator from Illinois, Darin LaHood, said he was confused by the Biden administration’s lack of remedies. LaHood declared:
As I listened to you here today, and I look at what’s not been done by this administration, it’s really perplexing in a lot of ways on whether the administration is tone deaf or unaware or becoming aware right now.
Biden Declares Americans ‘Feel Financially Comfortable,’ While His Administration Is Accused of Fueling Power-Hungry Politicians
Joe Biden, the American president was just recently inaugurated told the U.S. public that “families are carrying less debt” and “their average savings are up” since he became president. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Statistics show that American saving has fallen to levels not seen in 2008, however. Biden’s speech further noted that his administration feels more Americans “feel financially comfortable” since 2013.
The American television host Tucker Carlson opined after Yellen’s first day of testimony on Tuesday, that the U.S. Treasury secretary’s “reckless, loose money policies caused inflation.” The Fox News anchor said that Yellen’s monetary policy is typical of bureaucrats seeking more power.
“Within a year, Yellen had all but abandoned the traditional constraints of monetary policy,” Carlson said. “Instead, there she was yammering on in public about things like racial equity and environmental justice. These issues are not easily quantified. They are therefore perfect vehicles for power-hungry politicians hoping to become more powerful.”
Yellen stressed during her testimony that the White House is focused on curbing inflation back to pre-pandemic levels, and that addressing inflationary pressure is “the administration’s highest priority.” An official from the Treasury backed Yellen’s comments by noting “the unparalleled strength of America’s recovery enables our country to address global challenges like inflation and Russia’s attack on Ukraine from a position of strength.”
What do you think about Janet Yellen’s commentary on Wednesday at her House Ways and Means Committee testimony? Comment below and let us know how you feel about the subject.
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