The Biden administration, a never-ending source of inadvertent humor that would be humorous in a different context, is at it again.
The latest White House self-own came in the form of a graph posted to Twitter on Tuesday with the title “Inflation Has Fallen by More Than Half” — followed by the words “Since last summer.”
“Great news: Today’s inflation report shows annual inflation is now at the lowest level since March 2021, and less than half of what it was last June,” the White House tweet said.
“This is giving families real breathing room,” it said.
Great news: Today’s inflation report shows annual inflation is now at the lowest level since March 2021, and less than half of what it was last June.
This is giving families real breathing room. pic.twitter.com/l5k3B9WU2t
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 13, 2023
Twitter users rapidly decoded the graph’s true meaning using a combination of statistics and sarcasm.
“Great news! We’re stealing marginally less from your paycheck through inflation than we were stealing before,” Grabien founder Tom Elliott said.
Great news: Today’s inflation report shows annual inflation is now at the lowest level since March 2021, and less than half of what it was last June.
This is giving families real breathing room. pic.twitter.com/l5k3B9WU2t
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 13, 2023
Conservative commentator Steve Guest also mocked the White House’s celebratory announcement, saying, “The admin points out that the moment Joe Biden took office, inflation took off!”
Great News: The admin points out that the moment Joe Biden took office, inflation took off! pic.twitter.com/0Uz7tntFmA
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) June 13, 2023
Meanwhile, Republican Rep. Guy Reschenthaler of Pennsylvania posted an identical chart under a different title: “Record Inflation Under President Biden,” with the smaller text changed to “Since Entering White House.”
The real story ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/qrcrwSJJML
— Guy Reschenthaler (@GReschenthaler) June 13, 2023
Numerous others reacted to the graph with humor and contempt.
This is so dishonest! @WhiteHouse knows most don't understand inflation. Inflation going down does not mean there is more "breathing room." It means the rate of price increases is slowing, but still going up. We are paying more than ever! We need DEFLATION for prices to go down.
— Justin T. Haskins (@JustinTHaskins) June 13, 2023
Last year I gained 9 lbs. this year I only gained 4.
Am I losing weight?— Edina dad (@Edina_Dad) June 13, 2023
Very misleading. The inflation rate is lower now than it was last summer, as measured by changes in the CPI. However, prices are still higher today than last summer. As I teach my middle school financial literacy students, prices do not come down unless you have deflation.
— PETROS (@PETROS_USA) June 13, 2023
— Cassie Cynical🐩 (@TuckerPoodleMA) June 13, 2023
you think the price of everything being 30-50% more than when you took office is doing a good job?
— Thomas J 🇺🇸 (@old4dis) June 13, 2023
All of these responses demonstrate the White House’s comical temerity in attempting to put lipstick on a pig of a record.
In 2022, administration officials were ambivalent about the issue of inflation, and their media lapdogs acted as if nothing was amiss. Now, administration officials are pleased to report that the issue that their media allies assured you was not an issue is improving.
Sadly, a single line in the White House’s tweet puts an end to the hilarity. “This is giving families real breathing room,” it said.
The notion that the Biden administration or virtually anyone in Washington would profess to care about families is incredibly offensive to the average American.
Thank you, White House and its allies, for providing us with “real breathing room” as you commit billions of dollars to the Ukraine conflict.
Thank you for the “real breathing room” provided by the exploding national debt and the plunder of the money of our great-grandchildren.
Thank you for providing us with “real breathing room” as we observe the counties adjacent to the nation’s capital become ever more prosperous at our expense.
If it were false, it would be humorous.