Despite Rhetoric, Biden’s Inflation Ripping Chunks From Middle Class

All the spin the White House can manage does not alter the fact that inflation is tearing through the American middle class. And President Joe Biden’s assertion during his recent State of the Union address that prices are coming down rings hollow to those who face them every day.

A report late last year by the Congressional Budget Office showed that middle class Americans are now the hardest hit by soaring prices.

Figures showed that households in the highest and lowest brackets nationally saw their incomes increase at a faster rate than inflation. Not so for the embattled middle class.

This largest segment of the population experienced wage growth along with the rest of the country, but it did not keep pace with the increased cost of living across the board. In December, inflation jumped another 6.5% from the year before, putting greater pressure on ordinary Americans.

Imagine being in the market for a new car. This has hardly been a pie-in-the-sky goal for most, as it previously has been a reality that many anticipated. 

That dream has largely fallen by the wayside for a vast swath of Americans. As Fortune observed last week, the new car market has transformed into “toys for the rich” with the average price of a vehicle reaching nearly $50,000.

That price is a staggering 30% higher than just 2019.

Now throw in spiking interest rates. As the Federal Reserve steadily hikes rates to try and rein in Biden’s inflation, the costs of financing an automobile are also through the roof. How much? Base payments alone now average $777 per month.

Is switching to a used car a better option? The average payment for a used car loan is now $544.

More inflation is on the way at the gas pump, according to tracking service GasBuddy. Prices are “primed to rise in a few weeks,” and California drivers are once again nearing the $5 per gallon threshold.

Interestingly, shoppers in the Golden State are still paying more for a dozen eggs than for petrol. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said last week that a box of eggs runs $4.82, surpassing the $4.75 average at the pump. 

And for the first time in four decades, a dozen eggs now cost more than a pound of ground beef.

Pick a segment of the economy, and prices for middle class Americans are skyrocketing. Everything from cars and homes to staple groceries are soaring, and the squeeze on average Americans under the Biden administration is only getting tighter.