President Joe Biden may be taking a victory lap on the economy, but the American people know better, Sen. Marsha Blackburn said on Newsmax on Tuesday.
"Inflation is up and the price of a gallon of gas at the pump has more than doubled since he took office," the Tennessee Republican said on Newsmax's "National Report." "This business of saying, 'Oh, inflation, it's only 8.5 percent,' people are saying, You got to be kidding me."
The cost for everything, from staples like coffee, eggs, and bacon, is up, as are the costs of clothing and shoes that depend on polymers that come from hydrocarbons, said Blackburn.
"The cost of a pair of tennis shoes, running shoes, equipment for kids for sports, the cost of fertilizer, everything is through the roof, and Joe Biden wants to tell you and have you believe that you are better off today than you were when he took office," she said. "This is craziness, and the American people know this, and they're very frustrated."
Blackburn also noted that farmers are hurting, with fertilizer costs going up 300% and the prices of pesticides and diesel more than doubling.
"You're trying to plant cotton or soy or row crops, and you're going, I don't know if I can afford to put the crop in the ground, and this is a problem," Blackburn said. "You're talking about [their] livelihood."
Polls are showing sharp disapproval of Biden's handling of the economic recovery, with 61% in an Ipsos-ABC News poll saying they do not approve, another 71% disapproving of him on inflation, and 72% of his handling of the nation's high gas prices.
But while the polls are low, Blackburn said, she thinks Democrats have "already decided that they're going to lose" and are taking "intentional" steps to implement a "government-run industrial policy."
"They want to control energy," she said. "They want to control the economy. Look at what they're doing around solar panels. These show you that they are trying to have that Soviet-style, socialist-style government industrial policy. You have to look at this and say, OK, these steps have to be intentional, constantly telling you that what you are seeing and hearing and experiencing is not accurate."
The gas prices, she added, are high because the administration and Democrats "want to move everybody to electric vehicles, even if you can't afford an electric vehicle."
"These are all concerns of the American people," said Blackburn. "They have figured this out that it is not missteps, even though the president misspeaks a lot. These are intentional steps."
Blackburn also discussed the upcoming Jan. 6 committee televised hearing, planned for Thursday night, and said she does not plan to watch.
"One of the things that we should keep in mind is that the Democrats are trying to elevate this now," so information can be released about former President Donald Trump, said Blackburn. "They don't want to look at the email traffic, the text messages the phone call records around Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi so they are choosing not to take a holistic review."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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