High inflation during President Joe Biden’s administration will lead to significantly higher prices for voters as they head to the polls in the 2024 election.
Since November 2020, prices have surged by approximately 21%, with year-over-year inflation peaking at around 9% in June 2022 before slowing to an annual rate of 2.4% as of September, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data analyzed by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Many everyday items have seen price increases well above the overall rate, including essential goods like eggs and butter, which rose about 163% and 50%, respectively, between November 2020 and September 2024.
Beef prices have also been significantly affected by inflation, with uncooked beef roasts up over 31%, uncooked ground beef nearly 27%, and uncooked beef steaks rising about 28%, according to BLS data. Additionally, bread prices have increased by more than 23%, and bakery items are up nearly 27%.
“Inflation has been one of the most brutal drivers of the pressure being felt by everyday consumers in recent years. Almost nobody can keep up with the cumulative rise in prices,” O.H. Skinner, executive director of the Alliance for Consumers and the former solicitor general of Arizona, told the DCNF. “It’s deeply upsetting to many people when headlines focus on individual inflation prints or annual inflation numbers and don’t recognize that the prices staring at consumers from the store shelves are shocking because the inflation that has cumulatively built up has reshaped the shopping experience in a brutal way.”
Inflation was just 1.4% when Biden took office, compared to a cumulative inflation rate of about 8% during Trump’s presidency. A May ABC News/Ipsos poll indicated that 44% of 2,200 potential voters trusted Trump on inflation, while only 30% trusted Biden.
In July 2023, the Federal Reserve raised its federal funds rate to a 23-year high of 5.25% to 5.50% to combat rising prices, maintaining that rate for eight consecutive meetings before implementing a 0.50% cut in September. The combination of high inflation and elevated interest rates has strained American finances, with delinquent credit card balances reaching their highest level in twelve years in early 2024, and the personal savings rate dropping from over 25% during the pandemic to 4.8% by August.
Some economists point to excessive government spending as a factor in the persistent inflation, with the national debt increasing from $27.75 trillion when Biden took office on January 20, 2021, to $35.69 trillion as of this week.
Prices for non-alcoholic beverages and juices rose nearly 22.5%, driven by frozen non-carbonated juices and drinks, which saw a nearly 51% increase. Food and shelter costs together accounted for more than three-quarters of the inflation in September, with the food index experiencing a month-over-month increase of 0.4%, significantly higher than the 0.1% increase in August.
“Inflation has increased by 21% under the Biden-Harris administration, resulting in declining real wages and a cost of living crisis for ordinary Americans,” Alfredo Ortiz, president of the Jobs Creator Network, said in a statement to the DCNF following Thursday’s BLS report. “Only by electing conservatives who believe in a sound dollar, economic growth, and deficit reduction can we finally make America affordable again.”
