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Fed chairman blows up Biden's 'Putin Price Hike' mantra

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President Biden on Wednesday repeated his insistence that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is to blame for the highest inflation in four …
President Biden on Wednesday repeated his insistence that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is to blame for the highest inflation in four decades. But Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell went off script Wednesday while answering a question under oath from a U.S. senator.
« Would you say that the war in Ukraine is the primary driver of inflation in America? » asked Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn.
« No. Inflation was high before; certainly before the war in Ukraine broke out », Powell replied. Hagerty, framing his question, said he realized there « are a number of factors that play a role in those historic inflation that we’re experiencing – supply chain disruptions, regulations that constrain supply, we’ve got rising inflation expectations and excessive fiscal spending, but the problem hasn’t sprung out of nowhere. »
But inflation already was rising incrementally by January 2021, when Biden took office, and by December had risen to 7%, Hagerty pointed out. « And since the war in Ukraine began in late February, it has continued to rise incrementally, at the same pace. »
Hagerty’s question was, « Given how inflation has escalated over the past 18 months, would you say that the war in Ukraine is the primary driver of inflation in America? »
The senator said he was glad to hear Powell acknowledge the war was not the driver of inflation.

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