Bidenomics Bust: Why Grocery Bills Are Up 30% and Savings Are Gone

The Bidenomics Promise That Never Delivered

When the Biden administration launched its "Bidenomics" branding campaign, it promised to rebuild the American middle class from the bottom up and the middle out. The reality has been the exact opposite. American families are paying more for everything — groceries, gas, housing, healthcare — while wages have failed to keep pace with the fastest inflation in four decades.

The administration likes to point to job creation numbers, but those numbers tell a misleading story. The jobs being created are largely low-wage, part-time positions that replaced higher-paying jobs destroyed during the pandemic shutdowns. The labor force participation rate remains below pre-pandemic levels. Millions of working-age Americans have simply given up looking for work entirely.

The Grocery Store Reality

Nothing illustrates the failure of Bidenomics more clearly than the grocery store. The average American family is now spending approximately 30% more on groceries than they were in January 2021. Eggs, milk, bread, meat — the staples of American life — have all seen dramatic price increases that show no signs of reversing.

The Biden administration initially dismissed inflation as "transitory." Then they blamed it on supply chain disruptions. Then they blamed it on corporate greed. Then they blamed it on Vladimir Putin. At no point did they take responsibility for the spending policies, energy restrictions, and regulatory burdens that created this inflation crisis in the first place.

The truth is that inflation is not a mystery. It is the predictable result of massive government spending funded by money creation. The American Rescue Plan, the Inflation Reduction Act, and trillions in other spending pumped money into an economy that was already recovering, driving up demand while government regulations suppressed supply.

The Savings Crisis

Perhaps the most damaging legacy of Bidenomics is the destruction of American savings. The personal savings rate has plummeted to near-historic lows. Credit card debt has surged past $1 trillion for the first time in history. Americans are tapping into retirement accounts just to make ends meet. The American dream of financial security has been replaced by financial anxiety.

Retirees on fixed incomes have been hit especially hard. Social Security cost-of-living adjustments have not come close to covering the real inflation that seniors face — particularly in healthcare, food, and housing. A lifetime of careful saving has been eroded by inflation that was entirely preventable.

Interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve — the only tool left to fight inflation — have made borrowing more expensive for everyone. Mortgage rates have doubled, putting homeownership out of reach for millions of young Americans. Small businesses that depend on credit are being squeezed out of existence.

The Energy Factor

One of the primary drivers of inflation has been the administration's war on American energy. On day one, Biden cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline. He halted oil and gas leasing on federal lands. He imposed regulatory burden after regulatory burden on American energy producers.

The result was entirely predictable. Energy costs surged. When energy costs go up, the cost of everything goes up — because everything requires energy to produce, transport, and sell. The inflation we are experiencing is, in significant part, an energy crisis manufactured by government policy.

The Trump administration proved that energy independence is both achievable and economically transformative. America became a net energy exporter for the first time in history. Gas prices were low. Manufacturing jobs returned. The strategic advantages of energy independence cannot be overstated — and they have been squandered.

What Real Economic Recovery Looks Like

The path back to prosperity is not complicated, but it requires a fundamental change in direction. The American economy does not need government management — it needs government to get out of the way.

Cut spending. The federal deficit is unsustainable. Trillion-dollar budgets funded by money creation are the root cause of inflation. Every dollar the government borrows and spends is a dollar taken from the productive economy and given to the political class.

Unleash American energy. Restore oil and gas leasing on federal lands. Approve pipeline projects. Remove the regulatory barriers that prevent American energy producers from doing what they do best — powering the American economy. Lower energy costs mean lower costs for everything.

Cut taxes and regulations. The Trump tax cuts proved that lower taxes stimulate growth, create jobs, and actually increase government revenue. Regulatory reform that removes the burden of compliance from small businesses and manufacturers would unleash economic growth that the Biden administration can only dream about.

Rebuild American manufacturing. Decades of trade policies that shipped American jobs overseas have hollowed out the middle class. Tariffs on countries that cheat on trade, combined with tax incentives for domestic production, would bring millions of manufacturing jobs back to American soil.

The Silent Tax

Inflation is a silent tax. It taxes every dollar you earn, every dollar you save, and every dollar you spend. It hits the poor and the middle class the hardest because they spend the largest share of their income on necessities. The rich can protect themselves with assets that appreciate with inflation — real estate, stocks, commodities. Working families cannot.

The Biden administration has been taxing the American middle class through inflation while claiming to be its champion. That is the great lie of Bidenomics. The American people are not fooled. They see the grocery bills. They see the gas prices. They see the savings disappearing.

The fight for economic recovery is a fight for the soul of the American middle class. It is a fight we must win.