House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) had a rare moment of clarity while discussing the ongoing inflation problem, in a conversation Sunday with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. Pelosi recognized that America must be less dependent upon other countries for its energy needs.
Pelosi appeared on ABC’s “This Week” to discuss the economy and other matters. Stephanopoulos noted inflation is “on the minds of all Americans” and asked her if “[t]Click here [is] anything you can do between now and November to bring prices down?”
Pelosi responded, explaining the employment rate’s impact on inflation and repeating President Joe Biden’s line about the Russia/Ukraine conflict adding to the problem. She responded:
Let’s talk about inflation. Here are a few points to start. Inflation, what — what causes inflation? The first is that inflation rises when unemployment falls. That’s not anything to accept. Inflation increases when wages rise. That’s one. Supply goes down and so does cost. The war in Ukraine and COVID have both affected supply. Now I don’t — there is a Putin price hike at the pump. He may not be able to pay all the money, but it is a significant portion.
After trying to pin the president’s incompetent handling of inflation on the war in Ukraine, she noted that Congress is looking at legislation designed to make America more independent. She stated:
What can we do then? Well, we — this past week we’ve introduced within our conference a bipartisan actually friendly conference, our U.S. Competition Act of 2022. I don’t know if that will be the title. That’s always a debate, but it will address supply chain. It’s very important to make America independent and self-sufficient so that we’re not as dependent on product coming from overseas, whether it’s because of COVID or whatever else. Non-shared values are also a problem. So holding up our supply for reasons — using that leverage on us.
Pelosi declares on inflation that House will introduce legislation to the floor to address market manipulation in Energy Sector.
“We need to have a bright light of transparency on how companies are making big profits at the expense…of the consumer.” https://t.co/1b57kQX9XM pic.twitter.com/7z6yOnKyub
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) May 15, 2022
Perhaps we can file Pelosi’s comments under “better late than never.”
Since years, both conservatives and rational Democrats have been crying out about being less dependent on foreign countries. As gas prices rise and Americans spend significantly more on groceries, those cries only get louder.
President Biden’s refusal to allow drilling for oil on American soil was yet another indicator that Democrats are not up to the task, when it comes to addressing the problems people are facing daily.
He made the difficult decision to cancel three Alaskan oil and gas leases, even though he had promised to take action to lower gas prices. According to the Economic Times,
Biden’s administration cancelled one of Alaska’s most sought-after oil and natural gas leases. This opportunity had the potential for oil to be drilled on over 1,000,000 acres. As oil and gas prices continue to rise, this decision is very timely.
The dynamics of European countries, heavily dependent on Russia for their oil, could have been changed if America was energy independent after Russia invaded Ukraine. America could have stood in the gap and supplied these countries with oil, so they didn’t have to depend on Russia. They might have been able to stand up against Moscow.
Pelosi has a point about American independence. Will Congress do anything to reduce inflation? This would be welcome news. But given the Democrats’ performance so far, we probably shouldn’t hold our breath.
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