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Perspective: It's inflation, stupid!

Old Money
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While pundits ponder the polls and election results events may already be enhancing the impact of what got Democrats into trouble in the first place. Presidential advisor James Carville famously opined, "It's the economy, stupid." It may now be the case that, "It's inflation, stupid."

To Americans already reeling from the worst inflation in over 30 years what might two more multi-trillion dollar spending bills portend? "More inflation, stupid." The President contends that "Build Back Better" will actually disarm and dissipate inflation. That, however, is not intuitively obvious.

Inflation has been termed the "cruelest tax.” Currently it pinches the pocketbooks of low income and fixed income fellow citizens. These are folks the President must hold or win back.

Progressive Democrats, on the other hand, tend to be younger professionals. They don't seem currently to be pinched so acutely by inflation. Further, they press more enthusiastically the progressive agenda.

This fact may account for both the Republican zeal to apply, and the frantic Democratic attempt to reject, the toxic label of "wokeness."

The administration has repudiated the adjective "transitory," because inflation does not currently seem to be that.

For the sake both of our fellow citizens and the vital two-party system inflation must be addressed before the looming mid-term elections.

I am Bob Evans and that is my perspective.

Robert Evans is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Economics, Business and Accounting at Rockford University and Associate Director of the Center for Ethics and Entrepreneurship. He is actively involved in the Rockford University public policy program, trains managers on law-related topics, is a political consultant and analyst, and also serves on non-profit boards.