(Casey Harper, The Center Square) Nearly 60 House Democrats voted with Republicans in the U.S. House Wednesday to put a check President Joe Biden’s executive orders.
The House voted on the REIN IN Inflation Act, which would require the Biden administration to publish the “inflationary impact” of each executive order before issuing it. The bill passed 272-148 with 59 Democrats in support.
“Pushing one big-spending policy after another, President Biden has continued to throw fuel on the inflationary fire,” House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said on the House floor. “That fire is rapidly consuming the wages of our constituents. They have had to pay higher and higher prices for everything from eggs to electricity – all while inflation pushes their real wages farther and farther behind.”
The bill would apply to executive orders with an estimate impact over $1 billion. Under the legislation, the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors and Office of Management and Budget would prepare the estimates. The Biden administration would also have to prepare a report for Congress each year.
According to the bill’s official summary, “the requirement does not apply to executive orders that (1) provide for emergency assistance or relief at the request of any state or local government or an official of the government, or (2) are necessary for national security or the ratification or implementation of international treaty obligations.”
Dozens of Democrats supporting the bill suggests it could have a chance in the U.S. Senate.
Critics pointed to the spike in federal spending since Biden took office. The national debt is on its way to $32 trillion this year.
“Biden’s reckless executive spending agenda has cost hardworking families more than 1 trillion in taxpayer dollars and exacerbated inflation,” U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, said.
Federal data show consumer prices have soared since Biden took office, particularly food and energy prices.
“House Republicans are holding the Biden Administration accountable for fueling the worst spike in prices in a generation,” Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said. “Under this bill, President Biden will have to reveal the inflationary cost of his reckless agenda, which he has tried to dismiss or downplay for the last two years. Since the start of his administration, President Biden has spent more than $1 trillion on executive actions that are continuing to fuel his inflation crisis – including a $500 billion student loan giveaway to the wealthy.”
