•Fed researchers found that supply chain disruptions in 2020 and 2021 were three to four times normal. The shortages associated with those disruptions account for 60 percent of the runup in U.S. prices in 2021 and the first half of 2022.
•Strong consumer demand promoted by the 2021 stimulus also played a part. But Biden deserves credit for that stimulus, not blame.
•The other force driving inflation was the Saudis’ decision to offset its 2020 losses by restricting production in 2021 and 2022. As a result, the average prices of a barrel of imported oil jumped from a low of $38.22 in 2020 to $59.78 in the first half of 2021, $70.95 in the second half of 2021, and $98.75 in the first half of 2022 when Europe also suspended energy imports from Russia.
•Oil prices finally fell 40 percent to $70.36 per barrel in the first half of 2023 because oil production expanded sharply in the United States. Saudi production averaged 9.1 million barrels per day in 2021, 10.4 million in 2022, and 9.6 million in 2023. However, U.S. production increased to 11.8 million barrels by mid-2022, 12.6 million barrels in early 2023, and 13.3 million barrels by December 2023. Oil prices receded when, under Biden, U.S. production overwhelmed the Saudis and drove down the global price.8
So, the research concluded:
•Far from mismanaging inflation, Biden tamed it. As a result, America has fared better than other advanced countries. In 2023, while U.S. consumer prices rose 3.3 percent, they increased 4.1 percent in France, 3.9 percent in Great Britain, and 3.7 percent in Germany. And we beat inflation without sacrificing growth: In 2023, real GDP grew 2.5 percent in the United States compared to growth rates of 1.0 percent in France, 0.5 percent in the United Kingdom, and negative 0.5 percent in Germany.9
Under normal circumstances, this should prove enough. But there is nothing normal about the circumstances within which Harris and the Democrats are campaigning.
Drive a Wedge Between Trump and Undecided Voters, and Between Trump and Vance
In setting out the facts in detail, Harris can potentially drive a wedge between Trump and undecided voter as well as between Trump and Vance. In the space that opens, Harris can engage people in conversations that focus not on grievance but advancement, not on barriers but on opportunity. Hopefully, it is in that space and those conversations that Harris can sway voters to leave Trump and vote for her.
Many of the potential discussions could center on the issues already discussed, and Harris can leverage what the Biden-Harris Administration accomplished – like standing up to dictators and bringing down inflation. But she can establish her own identify and agenda by emphasizing actions she would take regarding abortion, health care, affordable housing and education, gun control, climate change, and jobs. These are the issues that independents, undecided voters, and the youth want addressed in a sensible manner.
Voter are tired of having conservative men and women dictate whether women have control over their own bodies, they are tired of being haviconservative men and women dictate whether women have control over their own bodies,