Growth slowing, inflation rebounding: Fresh, bitter Bidenomics pills

Literally the day after President Biden bragged, “We’re following my blue collar blueprint to rebuild America, and guess what? It’s working!”, Bidenomics struck with a vengeance Thursday: The economy grew at just a 1.6% annualized rate in the first quarter, a third less than the consensus forecast.And while growth is slowing (from 4.9% in last year’s third quarter, to 3.4% in the fourth, and now 1.6%), inflation is heating back up.A key gauge of price hikes, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, excluding food and energy, surged at a 3.7% rate in the first quarter.And that suggests interest rates will stay sky-high, since the Federal Reserve wants PCE closer to 2% before it starts easing up.Even before Thursday, real median wages (that is, inflation-adjusted) began dropping again (as they have for most of the Biden presidency), while most of the new jobs being created are part-time positions — and many of the rest are government jobs.So much for all those pundits who’ve been fuming that the economy’s doing great, even though that darn American public stubbornly refuses to see it.And, yes, these are the fruits of Bidenomics — and why the prez has quit using that word.Inflation started taking off with the passage of his American Recovery Act — and the outlays authorized then, and in his multiple followup spendapaloozas (plus in his off-budget giveaways, including fresh tens of billions in “forgiven” student-loan debt), are still going out the door, further goosing Bidenflation.And all along, the president’s regulators have been busy adding to private-sector costs, depressing economic growth: Per the American Action Forum, Biden in just over three years in office has added more than $1 trillion-with-a-T in costs to private business and households, triple the Obama-era rate.Subscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter! Please provide a valid email address.

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