Democrats are sounding the alarm over a GOP ad that blast reckless liberal spending as the culprit behind the rising tide of inflation in the country according to a memo obtained by the Washington Post.
The ad in question was released by the National Republican Congressional Committee.
“The NRCC produced one of the first inflation spots we’ve seen and it was one of the most powerful Republican ads to date,” said the memo from the activist group Build Back Together.
“Notably, they did more damage with this ad than nearly any other conservative ad tested and they were able to do it in [15 seconds] instead of a typical [30 seconds],” said the memo.
The ad specifically targeted Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa, who told a group of backers this month that “No economists worth their salt has said we’re looking at a long-term inflation problem in any way, shape, or form.
“So what’s happening is inflation is based on year over year,” she told the crowd.
“Obviously, last year was a real different year in America,” she continued. “So when you compare any numbers against the previous year, it’s going to look a heck of a lot different
But that’s not true, necessarily.
Gas prices for example have risen off their pandemic lows of around $1.94, but have also smashed through pre-pandemic levels of about $2.64 to an average of $3.23 according to data by the U.S. Energy Information Agency.
The same is true for new and used car prices, two of the key components of recent inflation complaints.
Republicans have been targeting the $1.9 trillion, partisan COVID spending law passed by the Democrats in March as being responsible for the prices surge, saying the economy was recovering adequately without the additional stimulus spending.
As the Wall Street Journal reported, the National Bureau of Economic Research concluded that the recession caused by the pandemic ended in the spring of 2020 after only two months of a record downturn.
But now, Americans are worried that economy is overheated.
“The public’s optimism about the economy from earlier this year has ebbed, and more voters are expressing concern about rising prices,” said the Journal. “The White House can read the polls.”
And so, apparently, can the Republicans at the NRCC.
