The Reality of Biden’s Economy

Through countless “Help Wanted” signs, slower service in restaurants, overwhelmed small businesses, and canceled flights becoming a norm, it’s clear that our country is facing a severe worker shortage. Despite these obvious issues, President Biden continues his false narrative, claiming that the U.S. is in good economic shape – but Americans know better.

According to a recent study by the New York Times, 13% of American voters said the nation was on the right track, which is the lowest point in their polling since the depths of the financial crisis more than a decade ago. This is due in part to our struggling economy, which has experienced 40-year high costs of daily necessities and record-breaking gas prices. Additionally, even though Biden has touted the “historic strength of our job market,” the number of employed Americans is still below pre-pandemic levels, with half of small businesses stating they can’t fill open positions.

Unfortunately, Democrat policies are out of touch and Americans are paying the price. Early in the coronavirus pandemic, Republicans warned of the detrimental impacts of policies that shut down the economy coupled with excessive federal spending. The U.S. relied on expanded unemployment benefits, which in many cases paid people more to stay home than return to the workforce. What we are seeing now is a direct result of these consequences. Due to worker shortages, businesses have been forced to raise wages, which has in turn kept inflation at record levels.

Workers are also being affected by the policies of the Biden Administration. Over the past year and a half, wages are unable to keep pace with inflation. The Biden price hike has left many families throughout Oklahoma struggling to keep up, forcing them to turn to their savings to pay for essential goods and services, or in extreme cases go without.

In response to this crippling economic situation, I introduced the Education and Workforce Partnership Act earlier this year. This legislation would authorize the expansion of three existing grant programs to create new partnerships between employers and educational institutions. These partnerships would focus on filling the most critical job vacancies identified by the state and local workforce boards. Through solutions like these, we can train hard-working Oklahomans to fill gaps in the labor force that are negatively affecting our economy.

Americans deserve better than the president’s deflections and false claims. Americans deserve solutions. We must continue to work to address this self-inflicted economic crisis and restore productivity and prosperity in our great nation.