White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki–who spends most of her time spinning, lying, and circling back on behalf of the increasingly unpopular President Biden–had a rare moment of honesty today. She was asked several times about the budget reconciliation negotiations. At least twice, she referred to Biden’s desire to fundamentally transform the U.S. economy.
A reporter requested a status update on the Democrats’ discussions about the budget package. Psaki conceded that talks were ongoing about what a smaller proposal would look like but said that President Biden wanted the whole range of policies he included in his budget proposal. She added: “No matter how you cut it though, his view is we can still do something historic that will fundamentally change the economy for the American people.”
When asked about a preference among some Democrats to do fewer things well, she said a smaller budget will by definition do fewer things. She added that doing nothing was not an option with the challenges Americans face.
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Senators Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) want to pare down the $3.5 trillion package. Progressives, led by Senate Budget Chairman Bernie Sanders, are vowing to vote down the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill if they don’t get every last penny. A recent poll from the Trafalgar Group and Convention of States showed that 71.5% of voters are less likely to support the bill when they understand that it increases taxes and the national debt. One has to wonder what they would think if they knew the goal was to fundamentally transform the economy.
Another reporter tried to get clarity on what budget items President Biden was particularly tied to. When the reporter pressed on Biden’s preferences, Psaki responded, “The president wants to make fundamental change in our economy, and he feels coming out of the pandemic is exactly the time to do that. And if we don’t do it now, if we don’t address the cost of childcare, to go back to Joshua’s question earlier, if we don’t address the climate crisis, if we don’t ensure that universal pre-K is a reality now, we’re not going to have the same opportunity to do it for some time.”
If you ever voiced the opinion that the pandemic was a pretext for fundamental change and were called a conspiracy theorist, Psaki just vindicated you. Her comments also explain why Democrats are furious with red states that reopened and are back to low unemployment and regular operations. This administration needed you home, terrified, and disconnected from your community to fundamentally transform our lives.
Most Americans face higher energy prices, supply chain shortages, and the effective $175 tax the Biden administration has put on every household through inflation. Given their druthers, most would prefer to transform the economy the way President Trump did. The vast majority of Americans kept more of their paychecks when Trump was president. Unemployment hit historic lows, and real wage gains happened for the lowest 50% of wage earners. Companies returned operations to the U.S. to take advantage of lower taxes. We were more secure, more prosperous, and, most importantly, the nation was energy independent.
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Too bad mean tweets and dishonest corporate media got in the way. Joe Biden was elected because he promised a return to normal and because he wasn’t Donald Trump. No one voted for him to make transformational change. They voted for him to return to our pre-pandemic trajectory. Biden promised to shut down the virus, not the economy. To date, he has delivered on none of these promises.
Maybe that is why Rasmussen’s latest daily tracking poll shows Biden with a 41% approval rating among likely voters. However, 57% disapprove of his job performance, and 50% of those voters strongly disapprove. That results in an approval index of -30. The lowest President Trump ever scored was a -26 in August 2017. Through all of 2020, even with the pandemic, his lowest approval index was -12.
Right now, all Joe Biden is offering is more government dependence for the middle and working classes. Adding to it are higher energy costs going into the coldest months of the year, a more expensive Christmas dinner, and a solid chance that the hot toy the kids ask Santa for will not be under the tree. That is quite enough fundamental change for now.
WATCH Jen Psaki talk about fundamentally transforming the economy (~8:30 and ~18:00):
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