Biden Admits ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ Was The Wrong Name

After well over a year of skyrocketing consumer prices, the inflation rate is finally starting to moderate — even though gas and many other products continue to put a significant strain on the finances of working-class Americans.

But as much as President Joe Biden attempts to credit his administration’s economic policies for bringing costs down, many critics point to runaway spending as a key factor in ensuring that inflation remained as high as it did for so long.

One major sticking point involves the so-called Inflation Reduction Act, which passed through a Democratic-controlled Congress last year amid intense pressure from the White House.

Analysts noted at the time that the more than $2 trillion in new spending approved in the bill would do little, if anything, to combat inflation. Some even asserted that, despite its name, the legislation would only make inflation worse. 

“Naming it ‘anti-inflation’ is a joke,” said CNBC’s Kevin O’Leary. “This is going to be very inflationary almost immediately because we’re printing billions of dollars.”

During an appearance in Utah this week, Biden acknowledged that the bill’s name did not reflect its true intention.

“I wish I hadn’t called it that,” he said. “It has less to do with inflation than it does providing alternatives to economic growth.”

Of course, he continued to tout the supposed benefits of the legislation, claiming that it provided “breathing room” for struggling Americans even as the cost of almost everything kept creeping higher.

Nevertheless, that tepid defense was a far cry from his insistence last year that the bill must be passed to avert economic disaster.

The bill was widely described as a Trojan horse that claimed to tackle inflation while in reality funding a leftist wishlist on various fronts — most notably climate change.

Earlier this year, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland seemed to validate those concerns, asserting: “Communities across the country continue to face the devastating impacts of weather events made even more extreme due to climate change. The Inflation Reduction Act is a historic and transformational investment towards achieving President Biden’s ambitious goals to help American families and tackle the climate crisis.”