From rolling back the pandemic-era social safety net, to overseeing the largest inflationary crisis in decades, Biden’s legacy was one of economic despair
by Natalia Marques
Part 2 - Working people struggle under high costs
As Biden oversaw this massive rollback of the pandemic-era social safety net, people in the US were experiencing the worst inflationary crisis in decades during his administration. This crisis was experienced by many other Western nations, and was exacerbated by corporate price gouging and existing economic difficulties such as a lack of affordable housing and stagnant wages.
In the final days of Biden’s term, working people in the US are still suffering under a cost of living crisis, contrary to the positive spin of the mainstream media. According to AP VoteCast, a survey of over 120,000 registered voters conducted from October 30 to November 5, 96% of these voters said “high prices for gas, groceries and other goods” factored into who they voted for in the November 2024 elections—in which the Democrats incurred a stunning loss.
This is no surprise, considering that people in the US are still paying 22% more for groceries than they did when Biden took office according to October Consumer Price Index inflation data. According to US Census data from August 20 to September 16, over 93% of those polled had some level of stress over the last two months’ price increases, with over 45% reporting they found these price increases to be “very stressful”. Additionally, approximately 69% of people polled (around 250 million) have had some difficulty affording basic household expenses each week.
In the final days of Biden’s term, working people in the US are still suffering under a cost of living crisis, contrary to the positive spin of the mainstream media. According to AP VoteCast, a survey of over 120,000 registered voters conducted from October 30 to November 5, 96% of these voters said “high prices for gas, groceries and other goods” factored into who they voted for in the November 2024 elections—in which the Democrats incurred a stunning loss.
This is no surprise, considering that people in the US are still paying 22% more for groceries than they did when Biden took office according to October Consumer Price Index inflation data. According to US Census data from August 20 to September 16, over 93% of those polled had some level of stress over the last two months’ price increases, with over 45% reporting they found these price increases to be “very stressful”. Additionally, approximately 69% of people polled (around 250 million) have had some difficulty affording basic household expenses each week.
Corporate greed has exacerbated the crisis. Reports indicate that grocery stores have “price gouged”, or raised the prices of goods beyond inflation. A Federal Trade Commission (FTC) report from March of 2024 found that “food and beverage retailer revenues increased to more than 6 percent over total costs in 2021, substantially higher than their recent peak of 5.6 percent in 2015. In the first three-quarters of 2023, grocery retailer profits rose even more, with revenue reaching 7 percent over total costs.”
Working people have also struggled under rising housing costs throughout Biden’s administration, with housing costs hitting an all-time high in April of 2024. Rent prices keep increasing, with asking rent prices rising 3.3% in September, only exacerbating housing unaffordability which plagues working people. Nearly half of renters across the US spend over 30% of their income on housing.
A recent report from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development revealed the true cost of the housing affordability crisis: over 770,000 people were homeless on a single night in January of 2024, an 18% increase from January of 2023. For context, last year’s Annual Homelessness Assessment Report revealed that homelessness had increased by 12%, and the year prior showed an increase of 0.3% from 2020 to 2022.
Working people have also struggled under rising housing costs throughout Biden’s administration, with housing costs hitting an all-time high in April of 2024. Rent prices keep increasing, with asking rent prices rising 3.3% in September, only exacerbating housing unaffordability which plagues working people. Nearly half of renters across the US spend over 30% of their income on housing.
A recent report from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development revealed the true cost of the housing affordability crisis: over 770,000 people were homeless on a single night in January of 2024, an 18% increase from January of 2023. For context, last year’s Annual Homelessness Assessment Report revealed that homelessness had increased by 12%, and the year prior showed an increase of 0.3% from 2020 to 2022.
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